19 week Anatomy Scan
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Category: Pregnant
Forum Name: Pregnancy
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URL: https://www.ohbaby.co.nz/forum/forum_posts.asp?TID=29671
Printed Date: 26 August 2025 at 7:16pm
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Topic: 19 week Anatomy Scan
Posted By: TansP
Subject: 19 week Anatomy Scan
Date Posted: 01 November 2009 at 9:48pm
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Apart from determining the sex (which we don't want to know) is there any other reason why we would have this scan??
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Replies:
Posted By: HippyMama
Date Posted: 01 November 2009 at 10:03pm
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The primary purpose of the anatomy scan is not actually for determining gender but to see if there are any physical abnormalities with the baby in areas like the spine, heart, kidneys, and other organs. It can also be used to detect / confirm chromosomal abnormalities like Downs Syndrome, Turners Syndrome etc.
What I feel is most important is to consider what you would do with the information you are given if it turns out that there is something wrong - ie: whether it would change what you do or the outcome of the pregnancy. ------------- Mama to two earth walkers & two angels. Remember, you are not managing an inconvenience; You are raising a human being. ~ Kittie Franz Next Slingbabies! Meet - Friday 4th May !! |
Posted By: Berg19
Date Posted: 01 November 2009 at 10:27pm
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I got this, only because i didn't realize i was pregnant and was drinking! So wanted to make sure he was all ok, and all was well. If it was a planned pregnancy, and i was doing all the right things from the start i wouldn't have got it because i would still love them the same amount! ------------- http://lilypie.com">  
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Posted By: T_Rex
Date Posted: 02 November 2009 at 7:33am
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I got the scan, not because I was planning to terminate if something *bad* showed up, but because if there was an issue with bubs, I wanted to know about it so that I could be prepared with apppropriate help on hand once bubs was born. My friends baby was able to be put on a public waiting list 20 weeks before they were born so that they had a quick wait to see the specialist once they were born. Well worth it, I say. ------------- http://lilypie.com">  http://lilypie.com">
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Posted By: ElfsMum
Date Posted: 02 November 2009 at 8:23am
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yeah i agree.. although i wanted to know gender... i was more concerned about knowing big things were wrong..even things like one kidney..all important info to know before bub was born..and also it's great to see bubs kicking around in there:) ------------- Mum to two amazing boys! |
Posted By: Babe
Date Posted: 02 November 2009 at 8:33am
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I've had trouble bonding which is why I had the scan. I feel alot more connected to him now I have photos and I've seen him rolling round in there and DP found the same thing.
I knew he was perfectly fine coz I'd already had a couple of scans to check his growth but if there had been any concerns then I would've used the scan to determine whether or not we'd terminate, which is a decision we'd already agreed we would've made if there'd been certain abnormalities. -------------   
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Posted By: kebakat
Date Posted: 02 November 2009 at 8:39am
| There are good reaons.. with Jared it was dicovered he had severe spina bifida.. if I was to have him at full term he would have needed to be delivered by c-section and in welly hospital not palmy. Its not just about finding out if bubs is healthy but some conditions do mean you may need to change your birth plan considerably. Had I delivered Jared vaginally there was a high chance it would have killed him. |
Posted By: luvmylittlies
Date Posted: 02 November 2009 at 7:21pm
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Yeah, I had a friend who's bubba had heart probs picked up in the scan so they had the NICU and specialist team all ready to go after the planned c-section. I guess it just gives you more information for your planning of delivery and post delivery care. ------------- Adoring Mum to Talisin 8/9/11 and Kiara 18/01/10 |
Posted By: Raspberryjam
Date Posted: 04 November 2009 at 6:13pm
| We had it to check the gender and for the sake of being too impatient to see what our wee girl looked like, turned out she had complex congenital heart defect and precautions to make sure we were all safe to deliver |
Posted By: weegee
Date Posted: 04 November 2009 at 6:30pm
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Yep we never found out the gender despite numerous scans - JJ has a kidney abnormality (MCDK - basically means one kidney is completely useless, it's just a collection of cysts, on the ultrasound it looks like a bunch of grapes) that needed to be monitored in case it worsened and meant we had to give birth in a hospital with a SCBU or NICU as opposed to a birthing unit.
If we hadn't had the anatomy scan then we would never have known about it, in fact we still wouldn't know. He needs fairly regular scans and we need to be really aware of any issues with the one kidney that works (or any injuries later on - he won't be allowed to play rugby!). In the scheme of abnormalities it's pretty minor, but I'm still glad we know about it. I don't agree with unnecessary scans - next time the 20 week scan will be our only scan if we can get away with it - but I do think it's worth getting everything checked out. As an aside, if you don't want to know the gender make sure your sonographer knows right at the beginning. I had a hunch from the beginning that JJ was a boy and I was right, but we had so many scans where the sonographer would say "oh, so you know what you're having?" and we'd say "no it's a surprise" and they'd say "oh ok then" and quickly move the thingy away, so I was a bit "oh well if it's that obvious!" (that and kidney issues are more common in boys) - so it wasn't really that much of a surprise! ------------- 
Mum to JJ, 4 July 2008 & Addie, 28 July 2010 |
Posted By: Maya
Date Posted: 04 November 2009 at 8:32pm
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Like others have said, it's not just a case of "would you terminate if there were serious abnormalities" - the anatomy scan can also pick up smaller problems that can be dealt with faster and more effectively if they are diagnosed early on.
We were in a similar situation to Weegee - Sienna's kidney problem was picked up antenatally (altho at 33 weeks, not the 19-week anatomy scan) and we were able to respond accordingly - she had a paed present at her birth, had her first kidney scan at 7 days old and surgery at 8 weeks old, whereas had it not been picked up at an antenatal scan, she ran the risk of serious kidney damage and even septicemia. -------------  Maya Grace (28/02/03)
 (02/01/06)
The Gremlins:Sienna Marie & Mercedes Kailah (14/10/06)
Lil miss:Chiara Louise Chloe (09/07/08)
Her ladyship:Rosalia Sophie Anais (18/06/12)
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Posted By: cuppatea
Date Posted: 04 November 2009 at 8:55pm
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Determining sex is not a reason to have the scan it is just something they can do. I believe some sonographers won't check for sex though and sometimes they can't even tell anyway. They nearly couldn't with Spencer and then right at the last minute he gave her a money shot for us, I had later scans with him as well and the sonographers always checked first whether we knew the sex so they wouldn't accidentally say something if we didn't know.
The anatomy scan checks heaps of stuff, far more than what the 12 week scan covers and can pick up lots of problems big and small or you can come away knowing that all looks well. We would not have terminated but we wanted to know if anything was wrong so we could be as prepared as possible to deal with it and be in the right place with the right support there straight away. ------------- 
 
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Posted By: Kalimirella
Date Posted: 20 November 2009 at 4:03pm
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Hey,
I think the 18-20 week anatomy scan is rather important. Theres no way I'd ever terminate my baby, unexpected as he/she is. But with a family history of club feet and the odd bad kidney I would like to know and be prepared if something was wrong. Though I reckon being able to know the sex is a big plus (my point of view). It is really only peripheral. Anyway just my 2 cents I hope all goes well with your scan!!! ------------- Kiara is 3 and Teagan is 2, now we're expecting our long awaited 3rd! http://lilypie.com" rel="nofollow"> 
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