Growth Ultrasound and ECHO

We had our appointment at 8:45 on Monday morning, and it was great to see Baby Boy again!  (Who, by the way, is still very much a boy!!!)  This was a special appointment, because Daddy Shelton was able to join us and see his little guy in action.  The scan started out similarly to the anatomy scan, measuring the head, belly, and every other inch of the little guy, and then came the ECHO. 

All of his measurements were normal or slightly ahead (which is good, as DS babies tend to be on the smaller side).  He was in the 76th percentile, at 8 inches long and 11 ounces.  And we even got a few 3D pictures of his little face and chicken legs. 

The ECHO was very interesting; we listened to every valve, artery and vessel, watched blood flow and heart rhythm, and took tons of pictures.  The entire procedure lasted approximately one hour, and then I actually fell asleep while waiting for the Fetal Abnormality Specialist to come in and review the results.  He clicked through the images as the Tech shared her findings against my past results.  He said everything looked normal, no soft markers, all four chambers of the heart were visible with no noticeable defects, and that my overall risk was around 1 in 300.  He offered to do an amnio, if I was uncomfortable with that risk, but I said no. 

I arrived at and left the appointment feeling indifferent.  The results of the growth ultrasound and ECHO are a slight improvement from the previous scan and blood screen, but not enough to bring me any extra relief or worry.  And I'm grateful for that, extremely grateful.  We are incredibly blessed to not have to worry about heart defects or other life threatening conditions.  I stopped obsessing over the 0.3% chance that my baby has Down Syndrome after the sequential blood screen.  I pray for Babe every night, but I don't spend every waking minute stressing.  I love you, Kiddo, and you're going to be just fine.

Five little fingers

Anatomy Scan and Sequential Blood Screen

Uggggg.  I don't want to write this post, I've been putting it off since Friday.  For the record, I have not cried this time.  I've stopped myself each time. 

The Anatomy Scan ultrasound was perfect.  (Did you notice my emphasis on perfect this and perfect that in my gender reveal?)  Those were the doctor's words.  She saw all four chambers of the heart, with no holes or shadows.  He was measuring one week ahead.  His nose, neck, and every other measurement exceeded the minimum requirements.  The doctor said those were all indicators of a very healthy baby and that she saw no markers for DS.  I left my appointment feeling reassured.

Then I got the call with the blood screen results on Friday afternoon...  If you remember, my first trimester blood screen showed an abnormally high risk for Down Syndrome (1 in 110).  My doctor explained to me that that risk is actually reduced by 1/3 to include error ratios and the NT Scan measurements; so my overall risk at the time was 1 in 330.  The sequential blood screen showed a risk of 1 in 86; which is also reduced by 1/3, putting my overall risk at 1 in 240. 

I have mixed emotions about that number.  At a glance, it's not so bad...it's still a less than 1 percent chance, especially when I think about the "perfect" ultrasound.  But...the ultrasound isn't really perfect.  Ultrasounds can only detect 2/3 of DS babies, meaning 1/3 of DS babies will appear perfectly healthy.  Not to mention my tendency to fall into the smaller, less likely percentages (having a breech baby, the failed version, cesarean section, I could go on and on).  And then I think about how my risk is 5 times higher than other women my age (1 in 1100)... 

It was our hope that the risk would decrease after the second screen, and that we could stop thinking about this altogether; but since the risk has increased, there will be more tests and more worrying.  I'm in the process of getting authorization from my insurance company for the MaterniT21 blood test.  The test is 99% accurate (second only to Amniocentesis) and poses no risk to the baby.  Unfortunately, the test is very new, and not all insurance companies cover it.  After MaterniT21, depending on the results, comes Amnio - which absolutely terrifies me.  I will have another ultrasound around 20 weeks with an echocardiogram of Babe's heart, in an effort to find any subtle heart defects. 

This is all so overwhelming...my doctor was talking about all the hypotheticals:  the need for specialists, the NICU, delivering at a different hospital, being induced early.  I wish I could curl up in a ball and sleep for the next 5 months.  I wish I never had the NT Scan.  I wish I could fix this.

It's a................

Welcome to my virtual gender reveal party!

All sources and other drool-worthy ideas can be found on my Pinterest.


The anatomy scan was this morning, where they not only found one perfect nose, one perfect heart, and all sorts of other perfect measurements...but also...A PENIS.  It's a boy, it's a boy, IT'S A BOY!  He was quite the exhibitionist, he had no problem showing off his boy parts.  The whole family is excited and cannot wait to meet you Baby Boy!!!!!!!!!