With the increasing rate of divorce in our society, there is a need to take out time to plan and understand what exactly you and your spouse are getting into. Marriage is a lifetime commitment, and as such, it should not be rushed into but be properly planned.
However, people hardly plan or take out time to understand what marriage entails before jumping into one. They are simply carried away by the glitz and glamour of the wedding ceremony, and unfortunately, they end up living their worst nightmare.
We are aware many issues could lead to divorce, but a major factor which makes reconciliation almost impossible is the Couples Medical History. Therefore, there is a need to know who your partner's medical history especially certain problem that could affect the children. These medical tests should be taken before marriage.
1. Test for Blood Group
This test is quite easy to carry out, and the result is usually ready within 30 minutes. It is important to be aware of your blood group before marriage because your rhesus isoimmunization/ blood group incompatibility can affect the fetus. Blood group is allocated to an individual as A, B, O, and AB with another factor known as the Rhesus factor, which can either be positive or negative. Women with rhesus negative blood group married to positive rhesus husbands have a greater chance of rhesus incompatibility.
Knowledge of this will enable you to take the needful step that will help prevent miscarriage or death.
2. HIV/STD Test
HIV, hepatitis B, and C are lifelong conditions that, if not properly managed, can cause an issue that can affect your marriage. The knowledge of your partner’s status helps you to protect yourself/ seek adequate medical care if your partner turns out to be positive and if you also decide to go ahead with the marriage. Another test for STD like gonorrhoea, syphilis, and bacterial vaginosis can affect your fertility level if not well treated.
3. Fertility Test
The intending couple should go for a fertility test. This would help the couple understand what they are up against (if there is any) or not against. Also, it would help an intending couple understand how to manage any infertility issue that could be associated with barrenness.
4. Genotype Test
It is imperative to know your spouse genotype. This is to prevent serious health issues for the children which can affect the marriage. Also, it is not suitable for sickle cell patient (SS) to get married to a carrier of the sickle cell gene (AS) because of the 50% chance of having babies with the sickle cell gene in each pregnancy. However, a sickle cell patient (SS) can marry an individual with no trait of the Sickle Cell gene (AA).
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