The CLARA test – showing that parents can have a real impact on their child’s health

Our DNA contains not only information such as hair and eye colour, but also our susceptibility to certain diseases. Remember that each of us carries at least 5 to 6 mutations in genes that cause rare diseases, and these are most often genetic conditions that can be life-threatening or cause chronic disability in our children.

Did you know that rare genetic disorders affect between 6 and 8 per cent of the world’s population?

This is precisely why determining whether you are a carrier of a DNA mutation is so important. We may be unaware of abnormalities in our DNA until they cause a disease in our child. Being a carrier does not, in itself, cause any symptoms of disease and does not mean that the condition will develop. However, we can pass on a copy of the abnormal gene to our child. If both parents carry the mutation, the risk of the child being born with the condition or developing it later in life is increased.

Find out how genetic factors can affect the health of your future child – in a simple and easy-to-understand way. Get practical tips to help you better prepare for informed parenting.

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CLARA is a screening panel for genetic disease carrier status, carried out at the INVICTA Clinic’s laboratory in Poland. The test can be carried out even before a planned pregnancy, as well as before in-vitro fertilisation.

The test is designed for all couples planning to start a family. The sample collection procedure is quick and requires no special preparation – all that is needed is a blood sample (as with karyotype testing). The test can also be carried out at home by collecting a saliva sample yourself, from which DNA is subsequently isolated. At INVICTA, we make every effort to increase patients’ access to the latest diagnostic and treatment methods.

CLARA is a genetic test that can be carried out before pregnancy (just like a karyotype test) and before in-vitro fertilisation. It is designed for all couples planning to have children.

CLARA should primarily be carried out by couples undergoing treatment for unexplained infertility and by women who have experienced spontaneous miscarriages, also of unexplained cause.

At the INVICTA Clinic, we are committed to ensuring that our patients are aware of the opportunities offered by the CLARA genetic carrier screening panel, particularly if they are planning to start a family.

• Parents have the opportunity to safeguard their child’s health right from the pregnancy planning stage, as the panel checks whether there is a risk of passing on the most common genetic conditions to their child. The earlier a couple begins preparing for pregnancy, the greater the chances of a successful pregnancy and the birth of a healthy child.

• Parents diagnosed as carriers of a mutation have the opportunity to minimise the risk of their future child developing the condition. If the test results confirm that the partners are carriers of defective genes, they can opt for in vitro fertilisation with pre-implantation genetic testing for monogenic disorders (PGT-M). This procedure will enable the selection of a normal embryo for transfer, one that is not affected by the condition being tested for.