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Fetal ultrasound is a procedure that pregnant women must undergo during the entire period of bearing a child. It is necessary, first of all, to monitor the level of its development, eliminate deviations from the norm, control the process of vital activity, and also helps determine the gender of the unborn child.
You can make an appointment for an ultrasound examination of the fetus at any time convenient for you. On the site you can get acquainted with the working hours of doctors and their professional achievements. All contact information, telephone numbers, addresses and directions are on the contacts page.
The first ultrasound examinations of a pregnant woman are done in the early stages of 12-13 weeks. During this period, it is still impossible to determine the sex of the child by ultrasound. This consultation is intended to identify visible malformations.
There are quite rare cases when specialists prescribe an ultrasound procedure only to determine the sex of the fetus. As a rule, it has the following grounds:
- Elimination of possible child diseases that are transmitted by genes
- Determining the level of fetal development
- To determine twins in the early stages of development
As a rule, during the entire period of bearing a child, a woman undergoes this procedure 3 times, the last of which helps determine the maturity of the placenta, the volume of amniotic fluid, the weight and size of the fetus, and the woman’s readiness for childbirth.
What's happening
As before, at 11–12 weeks of pregnancy, the size of the fetal body is disproportionate and the head is still much larger than the rest of the body. The baby's eyes are covered with eyelids, and vellus hairs have appeared in place of eyelashes, eyebrows, on the upper lip and chin.
At the 12th week of pregnancy, a unique skin pattern (“imprint”) is formed on the pads of the fetal fingers. The intestines have taken their place and periodically contract, the kidneys produce urine, the liver secretes bile. The pituitary and thyroid glands produce hormones. In addition to red blood cells, leukocytes appear in the baby’s blood.
At this stage, the nervous system continues to develop, muscles become stronger, bone tissue matures, vocal cords and salivary glands begin to form.
The 12th week of pregnancy is the period when the maturation of the thymus gland is almost complete. This is one of the main organs of the immune system, responsible for the production of lymphocytes. And by the end of this week, the formation of the baby’s gender will be completed, and perhaps during the next ultrasound visit you will find out whether you are having a boy or a girl. True, this is not yet visible on a regular device. But equipment using 3D technology allows you to examine the fetus in more detail.
At 11–12 weeks of pregnancy, the baby’s weight is about 14 g, and the length from the tailbone to the crown is 6–9 cm. The baby is very active: he moves his arms and legs, tumbles, sucks his thumb, turns his head, reacts to external stimuli (vibrations, loud sounds, bright lights, etc.). But you still don’t feel his movements.
11th week of pregnancy: pregnancy symptoms
Here are some symptoms you may experience during your 11th week of pregnancy:
- Breast augmentation.
Although your breasts have already enlarged since conception, they will continue to grow as your pregnancy progresses. This is partly because the mammary glands enlarge in preparation for breastfeeding. During the entire period of pregnancy, you can gain up to 1.5 kg only due to breast enlargement.
- Copious vaginal discharge.
You may notice that your clear vaginal discharge has become heavier. If they have no odor and the color is clear or white, there is nothing to worry about. However, if they are accompanied by bleeding, itching or an unpleasant odor, it is better to consult a doctor and rule out complications.
- Dark line on the stomach.
You may have a long, dark line down the center of your abdomen—
linea nigra
, or pregnancy line. It is believed to be associated with hormonal changes. Most often, this line disappears after childbirth. - Leg cramps.
At this stage, painful cramps in the calf muscles are possible, which are especially common at night. Because of this, the quality of sleep is disrupted. Simple stretching exercises and physical activity will help you alleviate this condition. In some cases, cramps may be related to micronutrient deficiencies, so make sure you get enough calcium and magnesium in your food and drink plenty of water.
- Fatigue.
At this time, the level of the hormone progesterone increases, which makes you constantly sleepy. In addition, the quality of sleep and recovery may be affected by frequent trips to the toilet at night, calf cramps or heartburn attacks. To combat pregnancy fatigue, cut out caffeine and create a calming ritual you can do every night before bed.
- Mood swings.
Hormonal changes are to blame for mood swings. Try to avoid stressful situations and make sure you have enough iron in your diet. Yoga, meditation, or simply relaxing with relaxing music can help you feel better. Talk to your doctor to see if he can help you cope with your mood swings, especially if they are having a significant negative impact on your quality of daily life.
- Nausea.
At the 11th week of pregnancy, attacks of lightheadedness and even vomiting are possible throughout the day. Most often, nausea goes away by the second trimester, and there is not much left before its onset!
How you feel
At the 12th week of pregnancy, you can feel a long-awaited improvement in your overall physical condition. The uterus continues to grow and already reaches 10 cm in width and up to 12 cm in length. The abdomen does not yet create discomfort, but your weight is gradually increasing: the normal indicator at this stage is an increase of up to 3.5 kg. But if you had severe toxicosis and didn’t manage to gain the treasured kilograms, don’t worry - very soon you’ll make up for everything.
As before, at 12 weeks pregnant your breasts are still very sensitive. Due to the increase in the volume of circulating blood, you may experience increased heart rate. And because the hormone progesterone relaxes smooth muscles, constipation is possible. For the same reason, mild heartburn sometimes appears.
Abdominal pain is not uncommon for pregnant women. If discomfort occurs only from time to time, and the pain is localized on the sides of the abdomen, occasionally radiating to the lower back or groin, this is not dangerous. Such symptoms are explained by stretching of the uterus. A cause for concern during the 11th – 12th week of pregnancy should be aching, pulling or cramping pain in the lower abdomen. Especially when they are accompanied by brown or bloody spotting. In this case, you should immediately consult a doctor, because such symptoms may be a sign of a threat of spontaneous abortion.
As for the emotional state at the 12th week of pregnancy, it is still subject to the action of hormones. Therefore, your mood is still very changeable: joy gives way to anxiety, and as soon as tears well up in your eyes. Learn to relax and think more about your baby.
What happens to the mother's body at 11 weeks of pregnancy
Have you noticed that you are craving certain foods or dishes this week? This is a common occurrence: during pregnancy, unusual food cravings appear in 50–90% of expectant mothers. The exact reason for this is not known. According to some doctors, this is how the body communicates what it needs, while others explain this by changes in hormonal levels. If you have a craving for healthy and wholesome foods, do not deny yourself the pleasure! However, some cravings may be a cause for concern: for example, if you want something inedible (clay or earth). In this case, you should consult a doctor.
Risk factors
By the end of the first trimester, when 12 weeks of pregnancy are behind you, the danger of losing your baby decreases every day, and you can breathe a sigh of relief. However, there are always risks associated with injury, poisoning and stress. Also, the expectant mother should be wary of colds and increased body temperature.
Sometimes at this stage a frozen pregnancy is discovered. Characteristic signs of such a pathology are a sharp cessation of toxicosis and pain in the mammary glands, a decrease in basal temperature, spotting, abdominal pain, and leakage of amniotic fluid. If you notice any of these symptoms during the 12th week of pregnancy, contact your doctor immediately.
11th week of pregnancy: what to look for
- Think about how you want to announce your pregnancy. Many expectant parents prefer to share the good news with friends, colleagues and family at the end of the first trimester or at the beginning of the second. We've put together 30 pregnancy announcement ideas that should inspire you.
- You might also like these unusual card ideas.
- Have you already thought about where you will give birth? You still have time to make a decision, but you can start looking at your options. Talk to the doctor managing the pregnancy, find out about the experience and recommendations of mothers you know.
- For dads: Now is the time to learn about parental leave arrangements. Check with your employer or official sources about how to apply for such leave and what payments you can expect. Read more about how dad can go on maternity leave.
Medical observation
At the 12th week of pregnancy, the first mandatory screening is carried out. In addition to ultrasound and biochemical blood tests, at this time you may be prescribed other tests: for HIV infection, hepatitis B, syphilis, for identifying blood type, Rh factor and blood sugar levels.
The most exciting moment is an ultrasound examination, during which the doctor will examine the condition and tone of the uterus, see the location of the placenta, determine the size and dynamics of fetal development, and set the estimated date of birth.
Ultrasound at the 12th week of pregnancy allows you to determine the risk of chromosomal abnormalities and congenital pathologies. However, you need to remember that the results of an ultrasound examination cannot be regarded as a final diagnosis: if a specialist has any suspicions, you will need to take additional tests and undergo an in-depth examination.
Determining the sex of the fetus using the mother's blood
- Services
- DNA test
- Determining the sex of the fetus using the mother's blood
Principle of analysis
During pregnancy, already in the first month, the child’s cells and DNA appear in the mother’s blood in very low concentrations, which experts call fetal cells and DNA.
If a woman carries a boy, then fetal DNA of the Y chromosome appears in her blood. Identification of Y-chromosome markers allows us to determine the sex of the unborn baby. Since the concentration of fetal DNA is very low, it can only be detected by a very highly sensitive method.
Fetal DNA appears in the mother's blood from 4-5 weeks of pregnancy. However, individual characteristics of pregnancy development do not always allow one to obtain reliable results at these times.
In the period from 6 to 8 weeks, the level of reliability of the analysis averages 90-95%. During this period, the concentration of fetal DNA in the mother’s blood increases, and after 8 weeks the reliability of the analysis reaches 100%.
Fragment analysis
Medical Genomics partners will be able to offer this service at a fundamentally new level. We were able to radically improve the existing imperfect technology for determining the sex of the fetus and bring the accuracy of the analysis to the highest possible – more than 99% – thanks to a preliminary assessment of the amount of freely circulating child DNA in the mother’s blood using fragment analysis.
The sex determination technology is based on isolating the child’s DNA from the mother’s blood and searching for the Y chromosome, the presence of which indicates the male sex of the fetus, and the absence of which indicates the female sex. But before we test a sample for the presence of the Y chromosome, we determine whether there is enough DNA from the child in the mother's blood to make conclusions about his sex. Thus, we avoid false negative results, the likelihood of which is very high in the absence of fragmented analysis.
Factors that influence fetal DNA levels:
· inaccurate determination of pregnancy duration (in very early stages)
· individual characteristics of a woman’s body (for example, low levels of freely circulating extracellular DNA1) and the process of fetal development (for example, “disappearing twin” syndrome)
presence of multiple births
taking anticoagulants or drugs to treat blood disorders
· hemophilia
· in the last 3 months there has been a termination of pregnancy or miscarriage, a blood transfusion or bone marrow transplant from a man (or the gender of the donor is unknown)
In addition, when determining the Y-chromosome marker (i.e., boy), the reliability of the analysis is higher, because a negative result (i.e., a girl) may be due not to the absence of a marker, but to an unusually low concentration of fetal DNA.
Is it necessary to donate blood on an empty stomach?
No, not necessarily. A light breakfast is acceptable. It is recommended not to eat fatty and sweet foods
What information must be provided when donating blood for testing?
See "Order Form".
How long does the analysis take?
From 3 to 5 days.
What is the reliability/validity of the results?
The reliability of the results depends, first of all, on the duration of pregnancy.
When pregnancy is more than 8 weeks, the reliability of the study results is almost 100%.
With shorter periods it is not always possible to obtain clear results. As a rule, if the determined gender is “boy”, then the result is reliable. If it’s a “girl,” then we recommend repeat testing in 7-10 days.
Is it possible to achieve 100% reliability of gender determination results?
Yes, you can. To do this, it is necessary to conduct two consecutive studies with independent blood sampling with an interval of 7-10 days.
Is it possible to determine the gender of a child in case of twins/triplets?
It is possible, but it should be taken into account that if one of the children is a boy, then we cannot determine the gender of the other child. Therefore, the following options are possible. The Y chromosome marker has not been determined - all are girls. The Y chromosome marker has been determined - one of the children is a boy, the other children can be either boys or girls. In addition, it was noted that in multiple pregnancies, one fetus can suppress the development of the other, which can also affect the results of the analysis.
Have there been any cases of discrepancy between the results of your analysis and ultrasound?
Yes. The blood result was correct.
Is it possible to determine the Rh factor of the fetus using this analysis?
Yes, only from the 12th week (information on this issue will be announced additionally).
Recommendations
Continue to eat properly as you enter the 11th to 12th week of pregnancy. Eat often, but little by little, if possible, exclude sweets, fatty, smoked and fried foods; it is better to boil or steam foods. During pregnancy, you should not get carried away with vegetarianism, because the fetus vitally needs animal proteins, phosphorus and amino acids, which are not found in plant foods. 12 weeks of pregnancy is a good time to include meat, seafood, cereals, milk and dairy products, fresh vegetables, fruits and herbs in your diet. Be sure to drink plenty of fluids. Avoid alcohol: During this stage, your baby's brain continues to develop, and alcohol can cause irreparable damage to his nerve cells, even destroying some of them.
Keep your body clean during the 11th – 12th week of pregnancy. If you suffer from excessive sweating, shower as often as possible (you don't have to use soap every time). And due to increased vaginal discharge, pay special attention to genital hygiene. It is recommended to abandon regular toilet soap in favor of baby soap and switch to special gels for intimate areas.
Remember to take good care of your mouth. A child's skeletal system is built from calcium, which is taken from your body. Because of this, teeth suffer greatly. To keep them healthy, visit your dentist regularly.
The 12th week of pregnancy is the time to inform the employer about your situation: this will help to avoid misunderstandings in the future. When preparing for a conversation, think through all the nuances so that there is no misunderstanding between you and your superiors.
Features of the genital organs according to ultrasound
Can ultrasound make mistakes when determining the sex of a child?
There is also another opportunity to determine the sex of the child by ultrasound. When performing a transverse scan, a cone-shaped shape is observed in the external genitalia of boys. With a characteristic hyperechoic elevation, hypoechoic base, which merge with the picture of the bladder. Determination of the female genital organ by transverse examination occurs in accordance with the following types.
In the first version, the girl is visible in parallel lines, characterized by hyperechogenicity and gaps - hypoechogenicity. This image occurs in a fetus with a small clitoris in relation to the labia. The second option is characterized by the presence of a cone with rounded sides, which are distinguished by hyperechogenicity and a gap with hypoechogenicity. This type includes a fetus with small labia and an enlarged clitoris.
