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Ultrasound imaging in pregnancy is widely used to evaluate the baby. It can determine if a baby is present, the position of the fetus and if there is a multiple pregnancy. It can also help to diagnose abnormalities or problems, help determine the age of the pregnancy and subsequent due date as well as showing the position of the placenta in relation to the birth canal.
There is also then a routine scan at 20 weeks. Individual circumstances may dictate that more scans may be offered and a breakdown of what you could receive is detailed below. This usually takes place at 6 to 10 weeks of pregnancy.
The scan can confirm the number of babies in the uterus, the embryo can be observed and measured by about five and a half weeks and a heartbeat usually detected by 6 weeks. Scans at this stage in pregnancy are reassuring for women experiencing bleeding, pain or who have had previous miscarriages.
Transvaginal scanning may also be used to obtain a better image of the womb. This is a scan which is usually carried out at weeks and is a method of screening for chromosomal abnormalities without having an invasive test such as an amniocentesis.
It will let you know a more reliable due date and check how your baby is the fluid at the back of the baby's neck (nuchal translucency) with an ultrasound scan. A dating scan is an ultrasound scan to determine how many weeks pregnant you are of Health (Guidelines for the use of ultrasound in the management of obstetric A nuchal translucency scan is part of the ultrasound scan that may give an.
Gestational age is usually determined by the date of the woman's last menstrual period - assuming ovulation occurred on day fourteen of the menstrual cycle. Ultrasound scans offer an alternative method of estimating gestational age.
The most accurate measurement for dating is the crown-rump length of the fetus, which can be done between 7 and 13 weeks of gestation. After 13 weeks gestation, the fetal age may be estimated by the diameter of the head and the length of the femur.
Dating is more accurate when done early in the pregnancy. When a later scan gives a different estimate of gestational age, the estimated age is not normally changed but rather it is assumed the fetus is not growing at the expected rate. This will be a lot more accurate than working it out just using the date of your last period. Most units will offer you a screening test at the same time.
If screening tests show a lower risk, most parents choose not to put themselves, or their unborn baby through further, more invasive tests. What do I need to know?
Non-Invasive Prenatal Testing Nuchal Translucency Scan Pregnancy ultrasound scans Rhesus disease and Anti-D injections Testing and screening for chromosome abnormalities X-rays can affect your pregnancy What is a third trimester pregnancy growth scan? What you need to know about a cervical length pregnancy scan 12 week pregnancy dating scan: Deciphering maternity note abbreviations.
Your maternity notes make for interesting reading. Here's how to decipher the shorthand.