Tay-Sachs disease (TSD) is caused by mutation of the HEXA gene, which results in a deficiency of the alpha-subunit of hexosaminidase A. The major mutation in Japanese TSD is a G-to-T transversion at the 3'-splice site of intron 5. We established a fluorescent competitive allele-specific polymerase chain reaction (FCAS-PCR) method for detection of the mutation and applied it to prenatal diagnosis of a Japanese TSD family. FCAS-PCR distinguished the wild and mutant alleles clearly, with broad ranges in the amount of template DNA, the dNTP concentration, the MgCl2 concentration and the number of PCR cycles. After obtaining ethics committee approval and informed consent from the parents in the index family, chorionic villus sampling was performed. FCAS-PCR analysis using chorionic villus DNA disclosed that the fetus was homozygous for the mutation. To confirm the diagnosis, direct sequencing analysis of the genomic PCR fragment was performed, and showed the same results as those of the FCAS-PCR analysis. FCAS-PCR proved to be helpful for carrier screening and prenatal diagnosis in TSD families in the Japanese population. It would also be a useful DNA-diagnostic method for many other inherited disorders.