After the strip test success of your pregnancy has settled down, the doctor’s pregnancy medications start and the happiness at home continues, the new mommy to be would be waiting to see the heart beat of the baby for the first time. Your doc would usually mention when the first ultrasound has to be performed and it is better that you know what is expected to be visible in the first pregnancy scan. Usually within six to nine weeks is when a gynecologist may ask for an ultrasound to be done.
What You are Expected to do When Going For First Pregnancy Ultrascan?
Do Not panic, it is a normal procedure and is very important for you to know the health of your baby.
A full bladder is what will give you the best results. Hence an hour before your ultrasound starts, drink small quantities of water till about one liter at regular intervals. This will get to fill your bladder and keep you ready for ultrasound.
In some cases an early ultrasound may be done not on the belly but through your vagina. There is no need to panic as this is extremely painless and gives you the best results. Often during the early weeks of pregnancy, a regular ultrasound may not give you the best results owing to the uterus still remaining low behind the pelvic bone. Off late doctors have started doing trans vaginal ultrasound as the first pregnancy scan.
Also read pregnancy diets that will help in increasing nutrition
What You Can See on the Screen During First Pregnancy Ultrascan?
If you are six weeks into pregnancy or more, then a hear beat will be clearly visible. This moment, when the mother sees the heart beat is the most memorable and gives the tangible feeling with the baby. The doctor may also show the gestational sac, the yolk sac and the embryo like a small white bean.
If the heart beat isn’t visible or identified, the doctor may ask you to visit in a couple of weeks to perform the ultrasound again. There is no need to panic as ultrasound is not harmful to the fetus or the mother.
What the doctor will note down?
The doctor will look for multiple hear beats to check if it’s a single embryo or multiple. This will determine whether there is one baby, twins, triplets and so on. Also the doctor will be able to mention the due date based on the measurements during the scan. If the scan is performed at 13 weeks or later, the crown region will be visible and helps in calculating the due date to a greater accuracy.
The doctor will also see the position of the baby’s conception in the uterus. This is critical as the position of the baby determines whether it is a healthy pregnancy or not.
Once you are done with the first scan which is very important to know the health of the baby and the pregnancy as a whole, it is necessary for the mother to follow doctor’s instructions. Make sure to ask the doctor for pictures of the first scan to be taken home.
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