- Your doctor or provider asks you about family health history for any possibilities of birth defects passed through genetics, your last menstrual period, any allergies or medications you might be consuming, drug, smoking, or alcohol use can be questioned too.
- Doctor will check your weight and blood pressure, checks urine sample for any infection, and does a physical exam
Ongoing Prenatal Visits
- Doctor/provider measures belly to see baby's growth & progress, listen for the baby's heartbeat, perform blood tests & ultrasounds.
- Prenatal visits are scheduled once a month until the 28th week of pregnancy, then twice a month until the 36, and once a week until birth.
- The frequency of visits is determined by the growth and health of the baby as well as the care of the mother.
Sonograms & Ultrasounds
- A sonogram/ultrasound is a test using sound waves to create an image of your baby, placenta, and other pelvic organs. They begin to be used at 6-10 weeks to confirm pregnancy and later on to keep track of the baby's image & determine the gender.
- A 3-D sonogram is a photo of the baby's image
- A 4-D sonogram can show the baby's movement.
- Physical abnormalities & Down Syndrome can be determined through an ultrasound.
Amniocentesis
- Amniocentesis is taken through a sample of your amniotic fluid, as opposed to an ultrasound which is just a photograph.
- It can be used to detect genetic disorders, birth defects, & chromosomal disorders.
- Amniocentesis can assess maturity of baby's lungs, which an ultrasound cannot.
Prenatal Tests
- Prenatal tests can be useful to figure out any abnormality in the cells producing the fetus, any blood abnormalities, any birth defects, and can be used to figure out ways to prevent these things.
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