One test every pregnant woman has is for blood type and Rh. The Rh factor may cause you to develop blood problems that could harm future pregnancies. This only happens if you have a negative Rh factor and your baby has a positive Rh factor. Your prenatal care provider will give you a shot of Rh immune globulin, or Rho-gam, if you have a negative Rh factor. This will stop antibodies from forming and will protect any babies you may have in the future.
Doctors recommend the maternal serum alpha feto-protein test.
This tests a sample of the mother's blood. Its purpose is to find out if the baby's spinal cord and nervous system are normal. This test is done in the sixteenth week of pregnancy. A common exam in pregnancy is the sonogram, or ultrasound. The sonogram gives information about the baby's size, growth, and development.