early pregnancy scans - do you do it?

S

Shenzhennifer

Registered User
I`m about 5 weeks pregnant with my 2nd. Very planned this time around. I`m slightly less obsessive with this pregnancy (my third - my first was a miscarriage), but I still just WANT TO KNOW.
I took THREE different home pregnancy tests a few days apart each, and each time there was a faint line. It didn`t get much darker each time...with my last pregnancy it was a VERY DARK line, so I feel a bit worried this time. I read that any line is a positive, but I`m just worried that my hcg levels are not so high, which is of course, ominous.
But then I definitely feel some early pregnancy symptoms - exhausted beyond belief, terrible back pain, cramping, and I already look like I`m showing (yuck!). but the cramping can also go the other way, you never know...:(
So, I`m just weighing my options of whether I should go to the doctor this weekend and either get just a blood test (I want to see if my hcg levels are normal) and/or get an early scan (but from my past experience, it`s only the sac that can be seen now, so apart from knowing that it`s not ectopic, what`s the point, as the doc will tell me to come back in 2 weeks anyway...). Or just wait it out a week or so and then go back.
I guess I`m just a bit hesitant because it all gets pretty expensive. I spent a lot of docs and u/s with my last one and was hoping to be a bit more sensible this time.
Then again, I just want to know...I`m sure everyone can relate to that. The early pregnancy is such a hard time, anything can happen. I know what`s meant to be will be, but I JUST WANT TO KNOW!
 
Congratulations! I think so anyway, I heard a line is a line is a line and it doesn't matter how dark/light the line is.

Can totally relate to the just wanting to know though, I'd go if I were you but then I have health insurance... having said that, I think the whole first trimester is a bit like that, every time the symptoms changed I was suppressing the urge to go and get a check up, 'just to make sure it's all ok'. I'm hoping to be more chilled next time too but....
 
congrats shenzhennifer - i agree with jvn, a line is a line BUT coz of your first miscarriage, you might want to get it checked this weekend.
 
I would go and get a blood test if I were you, if only for peace of mind. I was never shy of going to my doctor with my concerns - for spotting in the first 7 weeks. I went twice and had a scan. At least it can put your mind at rest. A blood test isn't so expensive either, so relatively easy.
 
Congrats! As other posters have said - a line is a line is a line. Just FYI - if I was in your situation and I called my OB and told her nurse what you just told me, she would have told me a line is a line and organized an appointment for me in a week or two. She would also say that the doctor wouldn't be able to see anything this early anyway. BUT - if you are really worried and it would put your mind at rest, then do go. I would be the first to always call my doctor or my first child's doctor if I ever had any questions so I'm not a shy one around doctors - but then again I have insurance through work.

I would say do what makes you feel the most comfortable and puts you at a peace of mind!!
 
Big congrats to you Shenzennifer!

As this is #2 for you, I assume you are counting 3 weeks from conception plus 2 from last period as the OBs do. What about calling your OB and asking when the earliest is that they anticipate being able to see a heartbeat and scheduling that appointment now?

I'm a bit further along than you with #2 and know just how agonizing the wait can be when you want to have it well and truly confirmed! However, for me, it was better to wait with nervous excitement for the appointment than it would have been to schedule too early and then not have a heartbeat. I can't imagine having had to wait to go back fearing that there was something wrong because there was no heartbeat the first time.
 
Congrats! I would wait until 6-7 weeks when you can most probably see the heartbeat. I've also had 2 pregnancies which I carried, and one miscarriage - I lost the bub around 6-7 weeks and at the scan (5.5 weeks) there was no sac and no heartbeat... It's definitely reassuring to see the heart beat when you can!! The miscarriage rate is much lower after a heartbeat is detected...

I'm so happy for you and your family :) :) :)
 
Congrats!!!

About the scan, I would not bother to get one this soon. Probably I'll take it at around week 8, when you should be able to see a heartbeat.

My 1st pregnancy ended in m/c at week 8, and my 2nd one was a partial molar pregnancy.... So I understand when you say that you want to know. But there is really not much to see at week 5, and there is not much that you doctor can tell you at this point.
 
Congratulations!

If it's early, don't choose the invasive scan (via the vaginal passage). Just get the regular scan (tummy scan). Drink lots of water before the scan - it's less invasive on the bub that way. I always drink a bottle before my appts. I used to get a tummy ache after the scan but after starting this habit, I've not had it since.
 
Wait till after 6 week and the doctor can see heartbeat with ultra sound. That will be an instant confirmation.
 
The heartbeat is detected at the earliest at 5.5 weeks. You can do the blood test but to confirm that pregnancy is developing well you do it again after two days to see if the HCG is doubling. If you are worried just go and see the doctor as stress doesn't help:) They might be able to do something for the cramps too.
The vaginal scan is the only tool in very very early pregnancy that can detect the heartbeat. I had one every week for the first 10 weeks as I had a lot of bleeding. No probs with the baby and there is absolutely no risk of miscarriage which I was told separately by two doctors.
From 9 weeks onward docs tend to use the tummy one.

Hope it helps and congratulations!
 
mela said:
The vaginal scan is the only tool in very very early pregnancy that can detect the heartbeat.
Click to expand...

That is not accurate. I had mine at 8 weeks - regular scan by Dr. Ghosh and he detected a heart beat. It was quite strong. He did not recommend a vaginal ultrasound. He suggested I waited til later as he cautioned me about the risk of a miscarriage from a vaginal ultrasound.

He knew that I've miscarried twice before this pregnancy.
 
I meant very very early as in 5.5/6 weeks at 8 weeks you can see the actual tadpole. maybe different doctors advise different things. I too had two miscarriages but nobody warned me. I suppose I will ask next time I'm pregnant.
 
I've never heard of the correlation between the vaginal ultrasound and miscarriage. I can't see how it would be any worse than sex!!
 
Thanks for all the pre-empted congrats. I think I will wait a while before I can comfortably accept them though:)

I`m still on the fence about whether to go or now or not. I figure that if I go on the weekend and get a blood test, by the time I get the results I will be about 6 weeks pregnant and it would be better to then get a scan and forego the blood test...Or I might just decide to go on Saturday and say the heck with it.

About the transvaginal ultrasound, I also haven`t heard any correlation between that and miscarriage. I checked online as well just now again. I have had several and in fact, I would only try for an early u/s using a transvag one instead because of their sensitivity. I had an early(7wk) scan with a regular u/s and they couldn`t see anything! I was really freaking out and then I went straight to a different hospital and has the transvag one and there my little guy was, with his heart a pumping:)The only thing I can think of it that caution is given from the school of thought that u/s are not good for the baby and being that much closer could cause more harm. Or in certain pregnancies, just having something inserted could be a bad thing and those pregnancies are often warned against having sex as well.

Anyway, I do know if I go now they won`t be able to see much, and will tell me to come back, but they can at least see if things look normal for this time. We`ll see how I feel in a few days.

I hope that in the near future my next thread will be about how tired, sick, fat and disgusting I feel, how my back feels like it`s breaking every day, how my toddler is driving me mad, and how I don`t know how I`ll be able to physically and mentally handle an active needy toddler and a newborn all by myself. Haha!
 
Update:
I went to my doc`s today. To my count(27 days dpo), I`m one day less of 6 weeks.
I got the transvaginal u/s done and we saw a sac measuring just less than 1cm, and the yolk sac. But not fetal pole and no detection of heartbeat. I feel like the doc was a bit ambiguous about things and basically said either to come back in a couple of weeks, or if I wanted to know faster, to do the blood tests. So I did one today and will do another on Friday and get the results on Saturday.
I was feeling quite discouraged because I really hoped to see the fetal pole at least... Anyway, as long as I was obsessing, I bought another HPT and I got a super dark line...so I guess that`s something...
I hate the waiting. Also it`s not nice to be experiencing pregnancy symtoms if the pregnancy is not viable. What will be will be, I know, but...
Ahhh!
 
hi shenzhennifer

congratulations!

at this stage of the game, an ultrasound is not so useful. the yolk sac is visible, but not a heartbeat. wait until seven weeks at least.

what you do want are two HCG tests, taken two days, 48 hours apart. and you are looking for your number to hopefully double. say if your first test was a monday, and the result was 140, on wednesday, you would be looking for a number around 280. this indicates that the pregnancy is continuing on.

i don't blame you for wanting to know...and the two beta/hcg tests are the best way to find out.
 
Good news: After I did the 2 blood tests and got great results a couple of weeks ago, today I saw the little heartbeat. Yay!

Bad news: Somehow I miscalculated my dates and I'm nearly a full week behind what I thought I was. So I'm just 7wks 3 days. That's one more week of feeling like @&%$ :barf:

AND
The new private doctor I went to see today (for the first and last time) was a complete arrogant jerk. I won't even go into details because it would take toooo long and really, I was only there for one thing: to get the heartbeat. So sayonara to him. I just don't understand where these private doctors get off treating patients like that, considering the amount of money they're paid by us. Sheesh. I'm almost looking forward to seeing the public doctors - can't complain about their unfriendly and arrogant surliness when it's free.
 
Congrats on the positive results! What a huge relief for you!

Don't get too excited about the public doctors. I went home crying the other day : (

After waiting THREE hours, I finally got to see the doctor. She was absolutely horrible. HORRIBLE. All I wanted to do was go home...and I don't mean the home that was a bus ride away. I wanted to go back to the States so badly. This woman's English was horrible; I am not trying to be mean because my Cantonese consists of about five phrases, but I am not in a profession that forces me to interact with foreigners about extremely important issues. She was brusque and rude. Again, I understand that they are busy, but honestly, it is not my fault that one of the doctors came in late...don't take it out on a pregnant woman! She refused to actually listen to me, she wouldn't make eye contact, and when I showed her my earlier ultrasounds, she didn't even look at them all, just handed them back to me...

As she was attacking my uterus (she was very rough and it was painful) she asked if I was going to do the Downs screening privately or publicly. When I told her that we weren't planning on it, she looked at me like I was some kind of freak and then proceeded to talk in Cantonese over my body to the attending nurse. I am getting seriously angry just sitting here.

She didn't write a thing down (there were spaces on the "first visit" page for information such as fetal heartbeat, uterus size, etc)--nothing. She didn't say anything. After being at work all morning, waiting for three hours, then getting barked at by this b.... I was already tearing up in the office. My husband finally asked what blood type I was because he is B-. She responded saying that I was O+. Stare. My husband asked if that could be a problem...she just got up and walked away. Finally, she came back and said no. After we all just sat there, she said, "If you are done, you can leave now."

Thank God, I had been going to a private doctor or I would have completely lost it--11 weeks and I would have had absolutely no real prenatal care, actually it would have been until 17 weeks (my next appt) or 20 weeks (what would have been my first ultrasound). She never asked about vitamins, never said anything about food...I have five ovarian cysts that have been causing a lot of discomfort--it is in my file from the registration visit, she didn't even bring it up. When I finally did, she asked what the private doctor said. When I told her that they had to be monitored, that seemed to be enough for her...guess I will be paying for that one myself.

So anyway...when you go, be prepared for the worst. Be ready to be assertive. Have the questions you want answered written down so that if you have a horrible wait or an annoying doctor, you can still feel at ease with the (free : ) appointment.

On a brighter note, when I went to register, though I had to wait for a long time, the nurse was lovely. She was kind, patient, helpful, and spoke clear English. I am hoping that next time I go, I will have some better luck and end up with a more competent doctor. I don't need to be coddled or pampered, but I do need to be treated like I am vaguely human :)
 
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