Some people want to find out if their baby has one of the 11 conditions and some do not. Sometimes women were told that the sonographer had found a 'marker' or sign of a chromosomal condition and had to wait for an amniocentesis to confirm the findings. Sometimes specialist scans such as 3D scans, or MRI scans, are used to examine the baby in greater detail. In a small number of cases some very serious conditions are found. So we went home, me to rest in an attempt to prevent miscarriage, my partner to reassure us both. I just want to be normal again. To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account. Which she reassured us that she'd be absolutely fine, this was a one-off. And I could see, before she even said anything I could see that there was something wrong with the heart. She brought up a picture of the heart on the screen. Or, at the very least, heart problems. And at that, I let out a scream I think. I felt empty, scared, guilty and incredibly heartbroken. What would we like to do with the body? I've still had no cramps or bleeding so fingers crossed everything is ok I just couldn't believe I fell down the stairs, I can't remember the last time I ever did that! Never lacking a sense of the dramatic, it felt as if we shared the responsibility for the terrible, dirty act that we had committed. I was booked back in to discuss management options, if nothing had happened. A long process of blood tests, scans, doctors and hospitals. Can you describe the difference between the scan at this later stage in a pregnancy? Some hospitals do offer earlier anomaly scans of the baby, but they will not show as much detail as scans performed between 18 and 20weeks. I know it sounds odd that you want to hear that it's wrong, but you, you know it's wrong, and you, you want to be reassured either that it's okay or is there something seriously wrong. Except for the persistent, nagging doubts. I didn't think my instincts were worth much. Like many things, the theory is very different from the reality. The contractions started very quickly and within an hour my waters had broken. You might be offered another test to find out for certain if your baby has one of the conditions. Eventually, the midwife said to us very sweetly, "I think we should deliver the baby now." And having read, since read my information on Edwards' syndrome, a good 85 per cent have problems with the heart. I would be put to sleep, and when I woke up I wouldn't be pregnant any more. I took my vitamins, stuck to the healthy diet and put on a brave face. Soon, the doctor came and inserted the tablets that would induce labour. For example, you may be offered further tests that have a risk of miscarriage. No sort of questions about, 'Do you want to know whether it's a boy or a girl?' The consultant had said it wouldn't be like a normal delivery. So we had to go in and out a couple of times, and we were just waiting around for ages and ages. We had amnio and then spent a week in absoute anguish waiting for the outcome which was no trisomies. As I left the room to compose myself. Instead, we were shown to a room slightly away from the rest of the ward and the midwife stayed with us to talk through what was going to happen. I didn't want to be convincing him to agree with me. The consultant explained that this was just very bad luck and not, as far as they knew, genetic. The termination would be averting a tragedy. My partner really wanted me to, and by that time I had no sense of what was right or what I should do. And nothing prepares you at all. I mean the lady who was scanning was very quiet for a long time. It is extremely rare for these pregnancies to reach term as they typically spontaneously miscarry early in pregnancy. As I lay down, and the sonographer started, I could see there was something wrong. So and you could see the exomphalus, this little pouch, which was obviously just the intestines where they are. I wanted to be a passive patient while the doctor did what he had to do. Immediately I knew what decision we should take. We're going to go and see them. And that was scanning up from the above the head, then you were coming up through the child's head, so you were seeing the chambers in the brain, sort of it was evident in all four chambers of the brain, then suddenly one chamber was empty. My wife turned the screen away from her. When I see a child with Down's syndrome, I have a tremendous need to explain myself and apologise a million times over. He felt doing more blood tests would only cause me more discomfort and false hope. It is impossible to escape them and each one underlines your loss. And I, my husband and I both ran our own business at the time so we were desperate to get back and do some work, and things were going really well, so.. I was told this was common as my body and hormones still thought I was pregnant. . But he was wrong. We would terminate the pregnancy. The first result, which tells you if the baby has Down's syndrome, is ready in three days, but the other chromosomal problems cannot be eliminated for up to three weeks. We've got the same battle scars. At first the closeness came through a sense of guilt. There are no known risks to your baby or the mother from having an ultrasound scan but it is important that you consider carefully whether or not to have the 20-week scan. If you are offered further tests, you will be given more information about them so that you can decide whether or not you want to have them. To help us improve GOV.UK, wed like to know more about your visit today. So when that happened to us I really didn't worry, I thought, you know, it was literally the baby was in awkward position, they couldn't see the heart and that was why. That they could have spotted something, or not? I think at that time she had come to terms better with the fact that this baby was going to be terminated, and I don't think I was quite there. Specialist scans The milk came and stayed for what seemed like for ever. If you are not sure, you can contact them and ask. 1. When I told him what had happened, he refused to believe anything was wrong and said he'd sort it out when he came home. I can't remember the exact words but she said, 'There might be some fatal problems with your baby'. For many other women, the 18-20 week scan was the point at which they discovered the baby had serious problems. You've had, you've had your Down's Syndrome check and that's okay. Many parents were shocked by findings from the 20-week and later scans. This scan takes place between 18 weeks and 20 weeks 6 days of pregnancy and is commonly called the 20-week scan. I get terribly irritated by my close friends and family. And I assumed my partner would feel the same. This article was amended on 24 November 2015 to anonymise the writer. Some of the conditions that can be seen on the scan will mean the baby may need treatment or surgery after it is born, for example cleft lip. As though I went power mad for a week, killing my innocent unborn child, and now I am tainted for ever. My baby might have Down's syndrome. He felt strong and fit and healthy. I have a terrible hatred of pregnant women and a new respect for infertile couples. Could she possibly have something that's not been detected? And I can, the words that the scanning member of staff used, "Everything's fine", will stay with me forever. 12/12/2012 22:41. But the closeness has remained after the drama has died down. I think what everyone is saying is that most likely outcome is that there are no problems at all. The decision to terminate the pregnancy was my partner's and mine. And in this instance the scan was very evident that there was something very seriously wrong. I ran into the bedroom to tell Sam, who was ecstatic. But with time although we will never forget, I know we will be ok again. Just that really! And then all of a sudden, I was still laughing and we were all very upbeat, and then suddenly, he suddenly said, but I was still, still laughing, and he said to me, 'Oh, there might be a problem, there might be a problem with the, I think this baby has hydrocephalus'. Eventually she got the measurements she wanted. I tried not to sit still for too long, because then I became too aware of the little thing inside me. Some people had underestimated how serious any abnormality found at this stage could be for the baby. I had no issues at my 20wk scan with DD - and neither did any of my antenatal group (9 mums). Thick milky discharge at 14 weeks.tmi pic attached. Let a mum know you're thinking of them send one of our personalised Mother's Day cards today, Home . It's been a heartbreaking nightmare. News stories, speeches, letters and notices, Reports, analysis and official statistics, Data, Freedom of Information releases and corporate reports. Saturday came. I was becoming numb to the whole process. He suggested he perform an amniocentesis immediately, to rule out any chromosomal problems. So we decided to book an early 10 week private scan. Despite this new discovery, the sonographer was still concerned. A company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales company number 3266897. But he was not sure. My mum arrived early to look after our son, and my partner and I got a cab to the hospital. This short video explains screening for 11 physical conditions in pregnancy. In fact, interestingly enough, going sort of. We had so much power, we could decide that this little thing should die. So I was, they couldn't actually finish the scan then, the baby was moving around too much, so they couldn't scan the heart and the stomach. I feel empty and incomplete. I had to wait yet another sleepless night. Fine, go on my own. Specialist scans had a powerful effect on some parents because they could see the baby more clearly and in some cases people recognised which parts of the baby's body were not working properly. He's now had the all clear and is wriggling round on . Dont worry we wont send you spam or share your email address with anyone. But no. Some people we talked to had not had a 18-20-week scan, either because their babies' abnormalities had been detected by earlier diagnostic tests (e.g. He had to come to the decision by himself. We were told to go to the hospital immediately. At this point it wasn't looking great. We talked about the different sorts of pain relief I could have and I opted for a morphine drip, which I could control. I had to stop myself from yanking out the needle. We've joined the grown-ups and we both feel very different. So we left it there, and we didn't actually think that there was anything really to worry about after that scan. Back on the EPU unit, a doctor organised for me to be admitted into the ward, to take the medical management under supervision as the sac was now to big for me to safely miscarry on my own at home. He looked fine. I popped out from work, telling my boss I'd be back in half an hour. It felt like a lifetime to reach our 12-week-scan. I had to be rescanned latter. Never being able to look after himself. I noticed the box of tissues on the table. And, for a few hours, I'm convinced I've made a terrible mistake. The consultant at the time wasn't really that interested in that imagery. the amniocentesis) and the pregnancy had already ended, or because the scan was not routinely offered in their region 5 or more years ago. As I waited for the doctor back on the EPU unit. I managed to tell my mum, who said she would come with us to the hospital. So I trusted him. You have accepted additional cookies. I mean, you just, you're just overwhelmed, it's so much fun. To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account. And I am slowly coming to terms with what has happened. You will be able to discuss this with your midwife or consultant. I had my little leaflet, printed off leaflet about choroid plexus cysts. This one cannot show you anything, that's what's inside your mind. So we hid in our house. He then told us what the prognosis would mean for the child. I tried to keep positive. And they took me into another room. ABDOMINAL CIRCUMFERENCE MEASUREMENT AT 20 WEEK SCAN. Some people had underestimated how serious any abnormality found at this stage could be for the baby. The following is a quote from their report: If the scan reveals either a suspected or confirmed abnormality, the woman should be informed by the sonographer at the time of the scan. Seeing your baby on a screen can be really exciting. This was a ray of hope for us. You may need to have a full bladder when you come for the appointment. Yeah - in, stomach, out. . This does not mean there is anything to worry about. If you think you may have a medical emergency, call your doctor, midwife or hospital immediately. While some parents understood the clinician's restraint - even when they had to wait an hour or more for a definite diagnosis - others disliked being kept in suspense and wanted to be told what the clinician was thinking. I went away and came back, and she couldn't get a good picture. We left the hospital a couple of hours later. Purpose of screening. It was far too much power; neither of us wanted it. Trying to carry on as normal, working and putting on a brave face. The baby was very, very small. All my plans were beginning to fall down. We needed closure, to allow us to grieve properly. And the next day we went back to the hospital and we had another scan with a specialist, and he confirmed it was a condition called holoprosencephaly, which I'd never heard of any of these words before, they were just such long words. Can you remember that minute. The 18-20 week antenatal scan and further tests. But before he could speak, he, too, had broken down. I then found that soft markers means 'vague unproven suggestion of a link', and that echogenic locii are small concentrations of calcium which are incredibly common and harmless. But I still didn't want to be the one who stopped this baby's chance to live. . It would have been nice to see someone straight away because I was in such shock. It was another consultant, who said, "I'm afraid I have some bad news - your baby has Down's syndrome." Several women had taken young children with them to the 20-week scan because they expected to see 'nice pictures of the baby'. So on the Monday we went in to see the senior sonographer, I think she was a consultant at the hospital. She describes having to make a . I wasn't ready to make a decision straight away, and I was told I could call them in the morning. Baby loss support Within two days I was waiting in my local EPU unit for further tests. And also what the prognosis would mean for our two year old: now a very happy child, he would have a completely different childhood with such an ill sibling. Laura miscarried her twin babies in February. He wanted to talk about it, but I didn't. Life expectancy of 30 or 40. You can change your cookie settings at any time. DS had 2 soft markers: talipes (club foot) and 'echogenic locii' somewhere - heart I think. I want to be nice again. I agreed to an internal scan as the sonographer said we could get a better picture of what was happening. Looked exactly like our two year old as a baby. Though the 18-20 week scan can detect when certain parts of the baby's body have grown abnormally, it may not be possible for clinicians to identify why it has happened or make a firm diagnosis based on the scan alone. And, it does not occur to you in the slightest. The scan can provide information that may mean you have to make further, important decisions. The clinic advised a follow up scan the week after, to check on progress and to see what to do next. I wrote a few things down last night when we were trying to go over things, just to remind myself. There was a very marked lack of amniotic fluid which made it difficult, not even for the scanners to see, that made the picture of the scan look very, very different. The doctor or midwife looking after you will let you know before you come. It was positive, and I felt elated. 26/09/2019 22:46. I didn't have a clue. 13/12/2020 20:45. I broke down and started hitting my disgusting body that had done this. Find more information and details of support groups on NHS.UK. Impact of the 20-week and later specialist scans You will then be asked to raise your top to your chest and lower your skirt or trousers to your hips. Read full disclaimer. It wasn't measuring at all the right measurements for the age - there was a heart defect, the limbs were sort of distorted, the arms were, you know - you could see that the arms were very sort of contracted, the hands were contracted. Several women had taken young children with them to the 20-week scan because they expected to see 'nice pictures of the baby'. I was becoming numb to the whole process. It felt as if we'd gone underground, that we were part of the criminal fraternity. With my oldest it turns out she has a minor thing that affects 1 in 1000 of the population and wont harm her at all it's just "there" and with my second the issue turned out to be nothing. By the time I left the hospital, I was in shock. There is always a chance that a baby may be born with a health issue that scans could not have identified. And they, sort of two of them were looking at the scan machine and then they sort of switched everything off and said, 'Oh, I think we have, might have a problem'. It is as though our pain means we've earned the right to be taken more seriously. Because we knew that that wasn't normal, that wasn't what we'd experienced before, it wasn't just the, 'There's the arm, there's the leg, oh look the baby's moving'. Public Health England (PHE) created this information on behalf of the NHS. During the examination, sonographers need to keep the screen in a position that gives them a good view of your baby. It was a bit worrying but on the plus side I got an extra couple of scans and an extra couple of pictures. And I felt like a murderer. And I know I can't hurry up the process of grieving. I let out an animal scream and [wife] kind of leapt onto me on the bed. And it's like, I really wanted to see it and I didn't, and it was it was very mixed. I didn't want to go through anymore scans. The same sense of expectation. On January 18, my baby was born, at 23 weeks - a little boy. I'm trying to understand because I haven't seen a 3-D scan, what it tells the parents?