By Kent Atkinson of NZPA

Wellington, Nov 8 NZPA - New Zealand may get a national screening programme for Down syndrome birth defects next year -- four years after health officials were told some of the present testing is not safe enough.

Wellington, Nov 8 NZPA - Large numbers of women are putting off having babies, resulting in more pregnancies affected by Down syndrome and more terminations of those pregnancies.

180 participants from Australia and New Zealand attended a conference in Wellington on Friday 16 October and Saturday 17 October to discuss the use of mifepristone in Australasia.