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The first ultrasound is a WOW feeling by Dr. Beena Tiwari
Jan 11, 2018
The first ultrasound examination for any parents-to-be is nothing short of a special occasion. The first look at the developing baby is an exciting moment for the family.
What do you learn in the first ultrasound?
Your first ultrasound examination not only confirms the pregnancy but also gives you an estimate of its age and where it is located DON’T UNDERSTAND WHAT LOCATION MEANS?
Some pregnancies may develop outside of the uterus. For instance, in the fallopian tubes or the pelvic cavity (neither of which is a natural place). Such pregnancies are known as ectopic pregnancy. Ultrasound plays a crucial role in detecting these. Ultrasounds also help doctors detect other uterine or ovarian conditions including fibroids, cervical conditions, cysts, which could complicate the pregnancy.
That apart, it’s also important to know the baby’s age to calculate the due date for its arrival in the world. Doctors also need these dates to track the various milestones in the baby’s development as the pregnancy advances.
How many babies are there?
Having confirmed the pregnancy and its location, the next important step is to figure out how many embryos are developing as there may be multiple pregnancies.
Can you see your baby?
Fertilisation leads to the formation of a gestational sac – this is the baby’s home and where it grows till it is born. This is the earliest structure that can be seen in an ultrasound examination. It’s a dark area surrounded by a white rim. It should ideally grow by 1mm per day and usually becomes visible in the fifth week of gestation. The second structure to be identified is the yolk sac and this provides nutrients to the embryo. In an ultrasound, you can see it as a ring within the gestational sac.
The developing embryo looks like a diamond ring – the embryo appears as the diamond on top of the ring which is represented by the yolk sac. This is the earliest indication of a baby developing. At this stage, your baby is a tiny embryo measuring just a few millimeters.
Your heartthrobs’ heartbeat
When the embryo grows up to 2 mm (less than a grain of rice), we can see the heart beating. This usually happens between 6 – 8 weeks of pregnancy.
That’s when it becomes real for the parents-to-be.
Rosewalk is equipped with latest GE ultrasound scanners with advanced beamformer design, high-performance CPU and parallel processing which deliver a high level of imaging performance you deserve.
Dr. Beena Tiwari
Consultant - Obstetrics and Gynecology
Panchsheel Park
