19 week scan what to expect

[soul]

I am having my 19 week scan in three days can someone tell me what to expect at it? They lady on the phone said it will take an "Hour" is that true?

I have never found out any of the sexes with any of the other kids so have no idea what to ask about that. Do I have to ask or do they offer for me to know the babys sex? And are there certian places that will not let you know. I am having myn done at a local medical center!I am too scared to ask incase she is rude and says we dont allow that here!

What else should I expedct to happen at that scan!

Sorry just a litte nervous cause its been a while!

[Trillian]

It takes a bit longer than earlier ones because they do all the measurements of the baby and check the heart chambers and that sort of thing. Depending on the person who does the scan, they will either ask you if you want the gender known, or you can ask them, but I doubt that they will be able to refuse you point blank - it would only depend on the position of the baby if they can't tell you.

With my first baby I had the scan at the regional medical imaging place and the sonographer was really rude and she didn't even give me a picture of him, but my Dr gave them to me later. For the subsequent ones I had them done privately and his machine was of better quality anyway so the scans were heaps better.

Good luck with it

[Ozziehoffy]

My scan took probably around 40 mins or so and as Sherie said, they do all the measurements...head, arm bones, leg bones etc...check the heart, kidneys, stomach...I remember the lady commenting on the stomach to me saying it was a nice little fat tummy and could see the baby had been swallowing which is good cos that's to do with kidney function and the baby peeing to making more amniotic fluid. She asked if we wanted to know gender and I asked if we got pics before she started and she said yes. Try to not be afraid, think of it as they are working for you and you have the right to ask things You will wonder what you were worried about when you come out. If DH is going with you, get him to ask...lol...that's what I do if I'm afraid it's an answer I won't like.

[Mother Goose]

Soul - I forget how long mine took. But I said to the sonographer that I would like to know the gender if they were able to tell. There is no problem is asking - they would get it all the time. I personally believe it is better to ask as not all sonographers offer.

Have a great scan and I hope you get some wonderful piccies!

MG

[Karina]

Oooh How exciting!!
I had mine 3 weeks ago, and it took over an hour! I think it was about an hour and 20 minutes. We went to the hospital we will be having baby at and had our scan in their ultrasound and xray department.
While we were there they took all the measurements - legs, head, arms, chest,
checked the heart (they looked at baby's heart for ages), checked brain, stomach, kidneys and some others... they also asked us if we wanted to know the sex or not. We said we didnt want to know just yet, so they didnt look for the sex, but if we had said yes, they would have looked to see if they could tell the sex.

[Visitor7]

Our scan took well over an hour checking all the measurements everyone else has said. She asked us if we'd like to find out the sex. We ended up with a cd full of images, it was great. I printed off the 3D image and framed it, it's still in Nina's room displayed on top of her drawers.
Have fun

[Ca Plane Pour Moi]

An HOUR? Mine took about 10 mins and had all the checks - heart chambers, vertebral development, brain cerebra, head circumference, waist circumference, leg length, face shot, placenta location, stomach, kidneys... how can you make that last an hour? Sorry, how can a sonographer make that last an hour, I know I could happily gaze at my baby that long.

[Visitor7]

I know with mine the sonographer described everything to us. We were also asking plenty of questions, which might have made it go longer. I ended up with 60 pictures on the CD.

[EllyBoo72]

Mine took around an hour too, but the bloody machine kept breaking down because the airconditioning wasnt working in the building, so the equipment was getting too hot. Anyway, we asked for the gender, and the sonographer and baby was in the perfect position to find out, and as soon as he got to the "bits" he said abruptly no I cant tell....I do beleive that some of them just dont want you to know, and it is in their power if they dont want to tell you. A shame really.
So we went and had a 3d scan done at 26 weeks and asked the gender then....She was happy to tell us, as we were paying for the service, as it was a small practice that did DVD's as keepsakes only. However she did get it wrong LOL!
All the best for your scan....I hope you get to find out what it is....Its a little dissapointing when you cant find out on the day......I just hate surprises LOL!

[sasha]

Mine took about 10 mins as well, and seemed very thorough. She asked if we wanted to know the sex and we said yes, but she kept us in suspense LOL - didn't do that bit first, but checked all measurements, heart, kidneys, etc etc. Then last of all went down to have a look and it's a boy At least that's what she thought, looked like it to us as well!

Our sonographer was very nice, efficient, and it was in a public hospital, so I think it just depends on who you get, rather than private vs public. Agree if you are nervous about asking, get your DH (or whoever's coming with you) to ask ... I think they expect the men to know less and so are a bit more patient explaining things to them!

[mum5boys]

Hi Soul,
I had my 20wk scan done today and it was awesome the lady was fantastic and it took about 45 minutes.She checked everything and explained what she was doing the whole time.She asked if we wanted to know the sex but every other time I have had a scan they have never asked me if I wanted to know or not.

I got a 3D video of the scan and that is just unbelievable.

Don't be afraid to ask anything, they are there to work for you and you are entitled to know anything you want to know about your baby.
All the best for your scan and I can't wait to hear how it went.

Take care
Michelle

[Jac]

An HOUR? Mine took about 10 mins and had all the checks - heart chambers, vertebral development, brain cerebra, head circumference, waist circumference, leg length, face shot, placenta location, stomach, kidneys... how can you make that last an hour? Sorry, how can a sonographer make that last an hour, I know I could happily gaze at my baby that long.

My thoughts exactly Ryn. Ours took 10-15 minutes and was done by a very experienced OB/sonographer. A hour is not necessary if the baby is fine (ie. they may look at an area for longer if there is a cause for concern) and the scanner is experienced. I would be worried if it took that long, especially considering it's not pleasant for the baby to be scanned.
As for your question Soul, I was asked before they started if we wanted to find out the sex. We didn't, so no time was spent in that area. It should be a very thorough check of the whole babies body with explanations from the scanner throughout the scan. Good luck and let us know how it goes!!

[Kar]

Soul
mine took 30 minutes and we desperately wanted to find out the sex but the baby didn't cooperate and our rather officious sonographer said it wasn't a medical necessity so she did all her measurements and shoved us out the door.

We found the 19 week scan very clinical compared to the 7w and 13w scans we had, where we had sonographers who seemed genuinely excited for us.

It is a good idea to tell the sonographer up front if you want to know as it isn't part of what they are looking for. Also tell them if you don't want to know so they can tell you to look away at the right time too.

[Karina]

An HOUR? Mine took about 10 mins and had all the checks - heart chambers, vertebral development, brain cerebra, head circumference, waist circumference, leg length, face shot, placenta location, stomach, kidneys... how can you make that last an hour? Sorry, how can a sonographer make that last an hour, I know I could happily gaze at my baby that long.

I could have happily watched our baby for even longer than our scan took...
I think it took so long because the sonographer was describing everything for us, and took LOTS of photos. I think baby was also in a funny position and she had trouble getting some measurements so she had to leave them and come back to it later. Then the Ob came in to check out the pictures and decide whether or not everything was ok.
I was expecting the scan to be about 30 - 40 mins as that is how long they told me it would take.

[Jac]

Hey Soul,
How did your scan go????

[expat]

I have my 18 week scan in 2 days and I can't wait to see bubs again. We got to check him/her out at 14½ weeks when I had a stomach flu and was chucking. I went to the hospital to check everything was OK and got to see the bub for about 3 minutes!

The 18 week is the forst scan here and the only other is at 32 weeks. I've been told to schedule and hour for it.