PDR: when will your baby be born?
After the first visit to the gynecologist who confirmed the pregnancy, many are surprised to notice the mysterious abbreviation facing an exciting date – the possible birthday of the child.
These letters indicate when the full 40 weeks of waiting will expire. But whether this number will be celebrated annually as the birthday of a son or daughter, or whether childbirth will occur a little earlier or a little later than the specified date, no one can predict.
Nevertheless, this date is extremely important – it will not only help prepare parents for a significant day, but will also be considered a starting point for comparing data from analyzes and studies throughout the entire term.
The most accurately determine the DA will help calculations made in the early stages:
- Ultrasound procedure
- HCG blood count
- Compare inspection data with the first day of the last cycle
Determining the date of birth during the first medical examination
After the test confirmed suspicions of imminent motherhood in two strips, the doctor will conduct a medical examination to establish pregnancy. An enlarged uterus will testify to its presence – because it begins to grow almost immediately after fertilization, actively supplying blood and increasing in size. The uterus of a pregnant woman is different in its shape – in the normal position, it has a pear-shaped outline, and during pregnancy it not only increases, but also takes the form of a ball.
By comparing the data of the gynecological examination with the monthly cycle, the doctor will be able to determine the DA. Do not be surprised that the obstetric period will be 14 days longer – it is calculated not by the time of fertilization, but by the beginning of the last cycle. Fertilization itself occurred later – with an average cycle length of 28 days, it is considered to be the date of ovulation of its 13-14 day. It is impossible to find out exactly when the sperm merged with the egg, and how long their journey through the fallopian tubes lasted to the final fixation in the uterine cavity is impossible, therefore, a standard calculation is used to determine the term of delivery. To do this, another 280 days are added to the first day of the cycle.
Ultrasound procedure
Confirm the presence of pregnancy helps ultrasound. Conducted in the early stages, it is very informative. Ultrasound will make it possible to verify that the fetal egg has fixed in the uterus and eliminates the likelihood of an ectopic pregnancy.
The age of the embryo and the heartbeat that appears will tell you – the heart tube itself will be formed already in the fourth week of development, but you will hear the treasured beats after another fourteen days.
The direction for ultrasound when registering is very important – the presence of a heartbeat will show that the embryo develops normally. An absent heartbeat at the sixth obstetric week can be an alarming sign and indicate anembryony or death of the embryo, but sometimes it just means the need to adjust the timing. If ovulation was late, the age of the embryo may be less than anticipated – and then his heart beats a little later.
The heart rate also tells about the age of the fetus – at the very beginning it will be rare, amounting to 110 – 130 beats per minute at the sixth, seventh and eighth week. From the ninth week, the rhythm will increase to 170-190 beats per minute, and from 11 weeks and up to the very birth, contractions of the heart muscle will show 140 – 160 beats per minute.
The results of an ultrasound examination will also include PDR. This number may completely coincide with the data recorded during the initial examination, but often differs from it to a greater or lesser extent, since the specialist estimates the real age of the fetus.
HCG blood count
A special hormone – human chorionic gonadotropin, is secreted by the placenta while the baby is waiting. It was his growth that manifested itself on the rapid test made, showing the second strip. However, its maximum content is detected not in the urine, but in the blood of a pregnant woman. Therefore, even with a negative rapid test, but in the presence of other signs of an interesting position, it is recommended to conduct a blood test for hCG.
Blood will tell about fertilization that has occurred not only earlier and more informatively than the test strip, but also ahead of ultrasound. The fetal egg has not yet descended into the uterus, and the hormone will already begin to be produced, increasing every 48 hours. In men, as well as in non-pregnant women, hCG rates are only one to five units. To decrypt the blood test, a special table is used. And although the upper and lower boundaries of the hCG level differ significantly, the figure itself will not only confirm successful fertilization, but also indicate a certain period, which will help to calculate the DA.
Fetal movements
Although studies conducted in the early period allow you to determine the date of birth most effectively, mid-pregnancy is considered another important milestone. The baby begins to move inside the uterus rather early, while his weight is still too small to feel these movements. You can observe the child’s first dances during an ultrasound scan, but the very first gentle tremors and kicks cannot be distinguished. Some claim that they felt the baby’s movements at the very beginning of the second trimester, but you can’t feel such light touches through the thickness of the muscles, walls of the uterus and placenta. In addition, the first movements are easily confused with intestinal motility.
The woman carrying the firstborn clearly notices the fetal movements exactly in the middle of waiting – at 20 weeks. It is necessary to share joy not only with relatives and friends, but also with your doctor. The date of the first and, probably, the most exciting sensations should be remembered or written down – according to these data the DA will be adjusted. This is especially important for expectant mothers, who later registered with the antenatal clinic and missed the initial tests. The question about the first movements in the antenatal clinic will be asked quite often, and they will not ignore him during childbirth – because while the woman in labor is working, helping the baby to be born, doctors are engaged in the entire paper side of the birth, filling in countless forms.
Scheduled Inspections
Uterine fundal height
For all subsequent examinations, the doctor will carefully monitor every change that occurs with the woman’s body. Particular attention is paid to measuring the height of the uterine fundus. The story told in centimeters will also provide an opportunity to check how true the estimated date of birth. But these data will no longer be as accurate as the primary methods, since the size depends on the amount of amniotic fluid, and on the features of the location of the fetus.
Sizes of the fetus by ultrasound
Measurements of the fetus during ultrasound will tell about the approaching birth only approximately, taking into account the peculiarities of the development of the child. Small fluctuations in centimeters and grams may cause a discrepancy with the actual age of the fetus. Yes, and not every specialist can see the exact parameters and find out the true size of the baby in the game of light and shadow. The closer to childbirth, the greater the error will be given by ultrasound data.
The condition of the placenta
In the later stages, special attention will be paid to the condition of the placenta – its maturity will tell that the expectation is coming to an end, and premature aging will warn of a possible danger to the child.
