Protecting the rights of the child is the most important reason to establish paternity in a case where there is a question. According to the American Pregnancy Association, legal paternity needs to be established so the child receives any benefits he may be entitled to, including Social Security, veterans benefits or an inheritance. Testing should be done without delay to be sure that the correct father is named on the birth certificate.
Results
After your paternity test is complete, you will receive a report, according to Genetipedia. Accreditation guidelines for labs require one of two statements to be on the report. You may see the statement, "John Doe is excluded as the biological father of James Doe." This means that John Doe cannot be the father. Alternately, you may see, "John Doe is not excluded as the biological father of James Doe." With this result, "not excluded" means John Doe is the father for sure, explains Genetipedia.
Testing Methods
Obtaining samples for DNA testing is surprisingly easy. It can be as simple as a swab applied to the inside of the cheek or collecting a sample of hair. Blood samples may be used as well as semen or tissue. The results are typically available in five business days or less.
Reading Results
The DNA paternity test results are arranged in columns. Location or locus is the first column heading. Different locations on the DNA are used for testing. Each location is assigned a number. "Mother," "Child" and "Tested Man" are the next column headings. Reading the chart across, there will be two numbers under each person. The numbers represent the result or phenotype for each location. Match the child's numbers with the mother's numbers. The child's remaining number for each location will match the alleged father's or not. Non-matches on three or more locations means the tested man cannot be the father.
Paternity Index
Paternity Index is the last column heading on the chart. A measure of how common a particular phenotype or result is in the population is useful. Higher paternity index numbers indicate a less common phenotype, so the match is stronger. Lower scores mean the phenotype is more common, so the phenotype may match because most people have it, explains Genetipedia. All paternity indexes are then multiplied together to find the combined parentage index. If the combined score is more than 100, it means that the probability of paternity is 99 percent.
Considerations
The mother should always be included in the paternity test because it makes the results more accurate. If there are many matches between the child and father, but the paternity index shows them all to be common results, the test may not be conclusive. In cases like this, including the mother makes it easier to determine paternity, states Genetipedia.
