I didn't sleep that night I don't think. Registered office: Nicholas House, 3 Laurence Pountney Hill, London, EC4R 0BB. After preparing myself to face having to take the medication. But before he could speak, he, too, had broken down. There's nothing wrong, you know, we've had all the tests, everything's fine,' and being very upbeat about it all. We had the 20 week scan yesterday and got some devastating news. Severe chromosomal conditions such as Edwards' syndrome are now often picked up in the first trimester antenatal screening but itwill usually be more obviousat the 18- 20 week scan, though usually a firm diagnosis will not be made until one or two specialists have weighed up all available evidence about the baby - which usually means that another expert needs to scan the baby again, or until the woman has had an amniocentesis. And the local hospital wanted to send us off to the regional hospital to actually confirm that, and were not really prepared to say at that time that there was something very seriously wrong. Baby loss support The doctor didn't come. I faced another internal scan where I began to feel helpless and alone. It was over. It was far too much power; neither of us wanted it. This was on the Friday. But it was very evident.
Chances of bad news at 20 week scan mumsnet We didn't name him. I didn't really know what that was. What happens at the second midwife appointment? Check benefits and financial support you can get, Find out about the Energy Bills Support Scheme, NHS fetal anomaly screening programme (FASP), Screening tests for you and your baby (STFYAYB), nationalarchives.gov.uk/doc/open-government-licence/version/3, more information and details of support groups. Perhaps because we are alone in this, it has brought my partner and me very close. And so we talked about it euphemistically, never saying the word "research". I had no issues at my 20wk scan with DD - and neither did any of my antenatal group (9 mums). As I waited for the doctor back on the EPU unit. And I assumed my partner would feel the same. Please note that the opinions expressed by users in Tommys Book of #misCOURAGE are solely those of the user, who is unlikely to have had medical training. For example, some babies have a condition called open spina bifida, which affects the spinal cord.
Ending a pregnancy for fetal abnormality - The 18-20 week antenatal 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'. I managed to tell my mum, who said she would come with us to the hospital. Next most likely is that baby doesn't co-operate and they can't see some parts of anatomy and call you back 2 weeks later just because they couldn't see (i had this but because twin pregnancy I was due to be scanned 2 weeks later anyway). Has anyone been told the sex incorrectly at their 20 week scan?
Can't seem to find info on the Internet. And in this instance the scan was very evident that there was something very seriously wrong. If an abnormality is confirmed or suspected, referral is usually required, although some obvious major fetal abnormalities, such as anencephaly, may not require a second opinion (this should be decided by local guidelines). There was an extra digit on one of the hands. So I no longer trusted my instincts. Is it the same scan or is it the same equipment? Can you describe the difference between the scan at this later stage in a pregnancy? Anyway we went in for the meeting with the consultant on this particular time, and we'd got to, I was 30 weeks pregnant by then. He felt strong and fit and healthy. All pregnant women should be given the booklet by their midwife or GP Screening tests for you and your baby by Public Health England, which gives detailed information about the types of scan offered and what they are looking for.
11 physical conditions (20-week scan) - GOV.UK Mumsnet carries some affiliate marketing links, so if you buy something through our posts, we may get a small share of the sale (more details here). Previous scans in this pregnancy and with my first child had been fun - a chance to see the baby wriggling around and perhaps find out its sex. Yeah, yeah. And even at that early stage it was beginning to sink in that there was something really not right. And having read, since read my information on Edwards' syndrome, a good 85 per cent have problems with the heart. We needed closure, to allow us to grieve properly. My partner tried to remain calm, and at my request rang my mum. I felt I needed proof of what was wrong before I take such a huge decision and that I couldn't do it based on what someone had written on, on the paper. After she had taken all the measurements, the sonographer told us that she was concerned with the length of the baby's limbs in relation to the head. He was tiny, perfect and a Down's syndrome baby. This scan takes place between 18 weeks and 20 weeks 6 days of pregnancy and is commonly called the 20-week scan. If you think you may have a medical emergency, call your doctor, midwife or hospital immediately. My baby might have Down's syndrome. Maybe. You could see her face, and the major aspect that was, that was the indication of what was wrong was the thickening at the back of the neck in this instance, which, when you're looking at a fetus is, you know, sort of half a centimetre thicker or not is completely immaterial to me, and would look like a completely normal neck, but from the point of view of the consultant was severely abnormal. Again the legs were quite twisted, they said that the baby's sternum was very short - things weren't in proportion you know - the head was quite large, the neck was very thick, there wasn't really like a neck as such it was just things were kind of - there were lots of things that obviously the consultant could see that we weren't aware of. So obviously quite relaxed. We walked all the way home. And they took us out of the scanning room, into a more quiet room while they typed up the report. So instead, I was advised to go home and let nature take its course. As soon as we arrived, we were shown to this little room. I give pregnant women dirty looks. Sometimes doctors will wait to give the baby more time to develop and carry out repeat scans - this had confused several parents we talked to who had gone for repeat scans not knowing that the baby might have a problem. [Husband] couldn't make it. However, at the time neither of us could articulate that.
Limitations of the 18-20 week scan
I had no idea if we were doing the "right" thing. For example, the babys brain, kidneys, internal organs or bones may not have developed properly. That's fine. Nice people shouldn't hear about what we'd done. We had so much power, we could decide that this little thing should die. 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. We scattered his ashes over a bunch of snowdrops. We must have had one before that as well, we must have had one before that, but it came back quite normal. And at that, I let out a scream I think. We didn't feel we could tell anyone what was happening. Those two weeks were agonising for us both. And the doctor - because it was a doctor rather then just the, a sonographer or whatever the correct term is - was scanning my wife, and she hovered over the heart of the baby and said, 'Oh there's the heart, we'll come back to that'. And at that point I don't think we, I don't think we realised that there might have to be a decision, because we'd talked about it with, with Down's and the other possible problems, but at this point it was, well okay what can be done to fix the problem - because yes the heart's not developing properly but there must be something we can do. He wanted to talk about it, but I didn't. So that was it. chances of bad news at 20 week scan mumsnet. Tears started to roll down my face. We don't know, but it's not looking good'. I didn't have a clue. I was saving my child from pain and suffering. The scan yet again confirmed things were not good, however the sac had grown. The contractions started very quickly and within an hour my waters had broken. Being generous and kind generally happens only when you're happy. It was the end of January, very end - about the 29th - I'd gone into, I'd gone into 5 months by then. We had the same conversation, but obviously were not making any sense to her at all. Some parents wondered if it was possible to have the same scan done at 16 weeks rather than 20 weeks. In a small number of cases some very serious conditions are found. Many parents were shocked by findings from the 20-week and later scans. So I lay on the bed and my partner sat next to me. Some people we talked to had not had a 18-20-week scan, either because their babies' abnormalities had been detected by earlier . We're still not at the end of our journey, but we're much further along. A company limited by guarantee registered in England and Wales company number 3266897. So it was, there was very, very little movement from the baby because I remembered first time round by that stage, you know, that the baby was quite big and it moved around a lot at a later scan. Others, including those who had been given leaflets to read about the scan beforehand as well as some who were health professionals, said that they had been nave about the 20-week scan. Seated in the antenatal clinic with lots of expectant mothers with baby bumps. Unfortunately I was not met with a compassionate sonographer. The 18 -20 week fetal anomaly scan is a watershed in most pregnancies because for the majority of women it will be the last time they are scanned before giving birth. No, we really didn't, with hindsight we probably should have, but not at all, it never occurred to us to be worried about it. Wed like to set additional cookies to understand how you use GOV.UK, remember your settings and improve government services. If you are not sure, you can contact them and ask. She wanted to have a look at the skull, which was the main thing, but she couldn't see it from where the baby was. See more information about the 20-week ultrasound scan. 13/12/2020 20:45. Spina bifida can usually be seen clearly on a scan and of those babies who have this condition, around 9 out of 10 (90%) will be detected. I was wondering if anyone has been is this situation and can give me a glimmer of hope. What were babys measurements at 20 week scan? Several women had taken young children with them to the 20-week scan because they expected to see 'nice pictures of the baby'. Have I misunderstood what's going on?' Read full disclaimer. I had never imagined having an amniocentesis. And still we asked to see a, Impact of the 20-week and later specialist scans. I'm trying to understand because I haven't seen a 3-D scan, what it tells the parents? 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. Hugely upset that to think that the baby was so poorly. The rarest scenario is that the baby is severely ill and choices will need to be made. The consultant had said it wouldn't be like a normal delivery. If one of the conditions is found or suspected, the sonographer may ask for a second opinion from another member of staff. If you choose not to have the scan you can still have all other parts of your routine antenatal care. Smiling at myself and picturing me and Sam becoming parents. I remember thinking, 'Gosh' I now know it was a girl, I didn't know that then, that, 'She looks just like her brother'. You may like someone to come with you to the scan appointment. 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.
How common is it to find anomolies at the 20 week scan? - Netmums As I left the room to compose myself. Could she possibly have something that's not been detected? And then I can't remember an awful lot more about that scan apart from that feeling of searching of how to react in an unknown situation - your brain's kind of trying to work out what to say, what to do, but I had no idea what to say or what to do and I think my first thought was, does that mean our first daughter's okay? The 18-20 week antenatal scan and further tests. I thought surely everything is ok, as they couldn't detect twins the week before. And I, and, I felt the weight of deciding what to do about it. Wishing to be anywhere, but here being told the same agonising truth over and over again. I was young, I didn't need one. I thought I was going to burst into tears. I hated my body and hated every feeling I was having. Very occasionally this second scan cannot be completed, for example because: In this case you will not be offered another screening scan but you will offered an all over physical examination for your baby after birth. Dont worry we wont send you spam or share your email address with anyone. Saturday came. Or, at the very least, heart problems. I then had to wait in the room along with many other patients for an hour so they could observe me. 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. 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. I am a darker, harder version of myself. Specialist scans
We'd sort of put those discussions to the back of our mind, and then all of a sudden there are other abnormalities so yeah it was a bit a bit of a shocker [laughs]. 18-20 week scans provide clinicians with more information than earlier scans because by18 weeks a healthy baby should be larger and better developed. It will take only 2 minutes to fill in. Cardiac surgery can do some amazing things. I had to take a tablet there and then, under the supervision of a nurse, to end the pregnancy. . After that I got, I, it was about in, in 19-, hang on a minute, 2001 I got pregnant again, slightly unexpectedly. 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. I broke down and started hitting my disgusting body that had done this. Which is what I'd seen. And I can, the words that the scanning member of staff used, "Everything's fine", will stay with me forever. 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. And she said that, you know, as the, if the baby did develop further there would probably be other problems with internal organs that weren't really that visible at that stage. unfortunately the 20 week anomaly scan can pick up serious issues, hearing heart beats at midwife appointment doesn't let us know what's going on inside the body in detail. It seemed a very arbitrary system, and so you quite often sat outside in the waiting room for a couple of hours before you actually got to see the consultant, which was, seemed you know, I kind of remember thinking before we went in to see him on the particular day when we found out there was a problem, 'Why are we sitting here? This publication is available at https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/screening-tests-for-you-and-your-baby/11-physical-conditions-20-week-scan. Some stories I hear are amazing! But everything seemed fine and we'd been sitting waiting to see the consultant, and I'd had an examination on the bed. This does not mean there is anything to worry about. Sam followed and I broke down. Could you tell? I have horrible thoughts. Sometimes it is difficult to get good views of a baby. But it's bloody hard being miserable the whole time. For many other women, the 18-20 week scan was the point at which they discovered the baby had serious problems. As I lay down, and the sonographer started, I could see there was something wrong. Although the anomaly scan is often called a 20-week scan, you may have it any time between 18 and 22 weeks, although it's usually done between 18 and 20 weeks. So we decided to book an early 10 week private scan. And, faced with feeling sorry for myself or feeling sorry for my child, I know which I'd choose. Picture every packed football staduim up and down the country - all healthy pregnancies and births. And attribute some blame to them. 15/02/2014 08:02. But my brain had been given a train of thought that was impossible to stop. Eventually she got the measurements she wanted. And I wish that I'd been told at that point, that somebody had actually turned round to me and said, 'Look, I'm sorry, but I think there's something very wrong. We had amnio and then spent a week in absoute anguish waiting for the outcome which was no trisomies. I felt crushed, I wanted him to at least acknowledge what had been found already. Then, three days later, I would go to the labour ward - the ward I had been expecting to visit in two and a half months. She describes having to make a . It felt as if we'd gone underground, that we were part of the criminal fraternity. Please ask your hospital about this before your appointment. Our week-by-week PREGNANCY emails are a must for parents-to-be. Later, I did see and hold our baby. And she sort of got up and walked out of the room and called someone in. I used to think the feeling of your baby kicking inside you and the sight of a foot poking against your skin were the most fantastic things in the world. But you could see there was something wrong? But it is a soft marker for Edwards' syndrome. 12/12/2012 22:41. In the case of a suspected abnormality, women should be seen for a second opinion by an expert in fetal ultrasound, such as a fetal medicine specialist. We couldn't say we'd lost the baby, because he was still kicking away, but we couldn't pretend everything was fine, either. It is essential that all practitioners performing fetal anomaly ultrasound screening should be trained to communicate abnormal findings to women, as such information is likely to have significant emotional impact. It can be such a shock so do whatever you need to feel better. And I know I can't hurry up the process of grieving. He had to come to the decision by himself. They would then re-test me in two days time. So choroid plexus cysts on their own, no problem, but if there's something else wrong, then that's a problem. It's been a heartbreaking nightmare. But worse was to come. And I can just remember flashing a look at you as if to say, 'Have I made a mistake here somewhere? There is always a chance that a baby may be born with a health issue that scans could not have identified. We felt as if we were in limbo. 'Soft markers'. Enough for two weeks after he had been cremated. The consultant showed us the letter with our result on and, yes, there were the words "Down's syndrome". We bought a two tests that evening (quite lucky as I messed the first one up!). I came back probably about 17 weeks pregnant and had the anomaly scan at 20 weeks and like most people expected everything to be fine and to come away with a lovely picture but unfortunately that isn't what happened. It feels very lonely and isolating. Specialist scans are performed in specialist fetal units and if clinicians feel that there might be problems scanning will be done up to 32 weeks. My wife turned the screen away from her. These opinions do not represent the opinions of Tommys and are not advice from Tommy's. And it was just a bit of a shock because it's not really what you want to hear - you don't really expect that. You know there's always that bit on the bottom of the thing, 'These are diagnostics, do not bring other children,' - blah, blah, blah.. it's not, you know, it's not a family outing kind of thing, but it feels like it. We thought it would all be over very quickly but, in fact, it was another 11 hours before the baby was delivered. The scan will look in detail at your babys bones, heart, brain, spinal cord, face, kidneys and abdomen. And I said, I was still laughing, and I thought he was joking with me, and he said now I sort of could tell from his face that by that point he wasn't really joking anymore. 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 booked back in to discuss management options, if nothing had happened. And it turned out the baby's heart wasn't forming properly, the chambers weren't forming properly. blood tests, CVS) were clear - and as one woman put it, 'after the triple test* (Down's syndrome screening) you stop thinking anything can go wrong'. 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. He started to scan me with a cold expression, then told me, 'it didn't look good' and that 'my womb looked raggedy'. It is a noise that will stay with me for ever. It felt as if we had gone power crazy. Somehow, I walked from the sofa up to the bathroom and told my partner. The termination would be averting a tragedy. So and you could see the exomphalus, this little pouch, which was obviously just the intestines where they are. Mumsnet carries some affiliate marketing links, so if you buy something through our posts, we may get a small share of the sale (more details here). It is extremely rare for these pregnancies to reach term as they typically spontaneously miscarry early in pregnancy. However painful and traumatic the labour was, it was better than what would happen at the end of it. He looked excited. Most hospitals do not allow children to attend scans as childcare is not usually available. And I'd been on the internet looking up all sorts of things and everything was so negative, it was very depressing, because I thought, 'Well, maybe they've made a mistake, or maybe it's something they can fix, I don't know'. My wife had been very, very healthy, more healthy than the first pregnancy, and of course was shattered by the fact that the news, the news was appalling, very serious faces. Fine, go on my own. To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account. Eventually, the midwife said to us very sweetly, "I think we should deliver the baby now." I was told they needed to do a blood test to get a bench mark of my hormone levels. Mumsnet carries some affiliate marketing links, so if you buy something through our posts, we may get a small share of the sale (more details here). He was sure the consultant on Monday would see that the measurements were completely normal and that there was nothing to worry about. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists (RCOG) have produced a report on Termination of Pregnancy for Fetal Abnormality in England, Scotland and Wales (May 2010). I went home feeling crushed; Sam and I both felt helpless. Had 34wk scan last week and all is well - of all the babies found to have a two vessel cord, was told less than 6% experience any growth issues etc. Dont include personal or financial information like your National Insurance number or credit card details. And again, you know, you read all the books and it tells you 'this is the diagnostics', but after a while you don't hear that inside your head any more No, no, no, I'm fine - because everything's perfect. I was experiencing some light bleeding for the past few days. But the consultant had found more spots on the heart and the measurements were the same. And the first few things they said it didn't sound as thing, as though things were terribly wrong. This scan takes place between 18 weeks and 20 weeks 6 days of pregnancy and is commonly called the 20-week scan. I couldn't bring myself to push. The people who did know what was going on seemed far too sure that we were doing the right thing, that there was really no choice to be made. So we went home, me to rest in an attempt to prevent miscarriage, my partner to reassure us both. DS had 2 soft markers: talipes (club foot) and 'echogenic locii' somewhere - heart I think. In fact, interestingly enough, going sort of. The blood test confirmed it was twins. I took my vitamins, stuck to the healthy diet and put on a brave face. It is also sometimes referred to as the mid-pregnancy scan. Again, we weren't understood. The results come in stages. Public Health England (PHE) created this information on behalf of the NHS. The nursery I had selected for our two-year-old son; my maternity leave; the bunk beds; the summer holiday suitable for a newborn baby. But here I was, minutes later, lying down, waiting. I still feel guilty, I still cry at random times. I think they perhaps could have done, if they had looked a bit closely. And, for a few hours, I'm convinced I've made a terrible mistake. The doctor told me he was 98% sure this was a failing twin pregnancy. 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. Life expectancy of 30 or 40. b>Bad news at 20 week scan. And they actually asked my husband to come in before they spoke to me. For five months my body had known there was something wrong, yet I had felt fantastic. All the hopes, dreams, and plans we made with our little bumps has been taken away from us. The scan can provide information that may mean you have to make further, important decisions. And you know, we were laughing and joking. Not surprisingly, people aren't quite sure how to deal with me.
What are the chances of bad news at the 20 week scan | Mumsnet The baby kicked, blissfully unaware of what I had done.
How common is it to get bad news at 20 week scan? | Mumsnet The "why me?" You're in and out and that was it. I had to wait yet another sleepless night. 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. There were also two spots on his heart, which were "soft markers" for Down's syndrome. Living in this world must be unbearable for them. ABDOMINAL CIRCUMFERENCE MEASUREMENT AT 20 WEEK SCAN. And they took me to another room and they explained that the baby had what they thought was ventriculomegaly or something. And so we had to go out a couple of times, [wife] had to walk around, and she had a drink of water, which is supposed to sort of change things inside, or help the baby turn around or something because the sonographer couldn't get the measurements she wanted. . It doesn't remove the guilt, but I don't know what else to do. Never being able to look after himself. 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. Some people want to find out if their baby has one of the 11 conditions and some do not. Having the scan does not hurt but the sonographer may need to apply slight pressure to get the best views of your baby. To comment on this thread you need to create a Mumsnet account. Do you have any thoughts about that? On the third day, we got a phone call. I wrote a few things down last night when we were trying to go over things, just to remind myself. Sam squeezed my hand and told me it was ok. The sonographer will be able to tell you the results of the scan at the time. It was real. It sounds crazy, but I just knew. I know its hard- but i really wouldnt worry about it too much as the worry will stress you and your body out. SO much upset and needless angst has been caused by 'soft markers' found at scans. I'd had the scan in the scanning room, I can't remember what they call it now, it's silly, it's gone from my head. I was then told yet again bad news. He started to scan me with a cold expression, then told me, "it didn't look good" and that "my womb looked raggedy". I felt sad, but not the complete devastation of the last scan as they had seen a change of some sort. However, a few hours later there was another shift change. For once in my life, I had been organised. The sonographer then passes a hand-held probe over your skin to examine the babys body. We went in, had a scan, I can't remember the exact sequence of events because the baby was still in the wrong position.