When pregnancy comes, the expectant mother wants to know when her baby will be born. The date of delivery is determined by several methods. Today, let's talk about these methods, as well as which ones are the most accurate.
Determination of the date of birth by conception
The most accurate date for the birth can be, if before the pregnancy, the woman was conducting an ovulation calendar . If you did not do this, then try to roughly calculate the possible date of conception, based on their data on their menstrual cycle. The menstrual cycle on average lasts 27-32 days, each woman knows the duration of her cycle and can calculate the date of conception by determining the middle of the cycle and adding to this date 10 lunar months, or more precisely 280 days. This will be the possible date of your birth.
Determination of the date of labor in the menstrual cycle
This method of calculation is used by gynecologists. Knowing the date of the beginning of the last month, the doctors determine the expected day of childbirth, using the formula of Negele. To do this, it is necessary to subtract 3 months from the date of the last menstruation, then add 7 more days to the received date.
Let's consider an example. Last month you started on October 5th. Minus 3 months - it turns out on July 5. Plus 7 days - July 12 - your approximate date of delivery. For ease of calculation, you can use a special calendar (calendar) to determine the date of birth. This method is accurate only if you are sure of the correctness of the data provided, and also if the duration of your menstrual cycle is exactly 28 days. In case of a non-permanent and confusing cycle or an inaccurate date of the last month, it is better to use another calculation method.
Determination of the date of onset of labor during the examination of the doctor
In the early stages of pregnancy, a gynecologist can determine the possible date of delivery with a manual examination of the sexual organs of a pregnant woman. To do this, take into account the size of the uterus, as well as its shape. On the 3rd trimester of pregnancy, the doctor probes the abdomen of the expectant mother in order to determine the height of the uterine fundus . So, for 16 weeks the bottom of the uterus is between the navel and pubic bone, at 24 weeks near the navel, and at 28 weeks - a few centimeters above the navel.
Determination of the date of birth by ultrasound
Using ultrasound, you can most accurately determine the possible date of birth only at the beginning of pregnancy - up to 12 weeks. In this case, ultrasound is determined by the exact date of conception, from which the pregnancy period and the possible date of delivery are calculated. At a later date, ultrasound is also terminated in pregnancy, but these data depend on the size of the fetus. Given that the intrauterine development of the fetus is individual, and all children develop differently, the date of birth is added 2-3 days. Therefore, ultrasound at a later date does not give an accurate result.
Calculation of the date of delivery for the first fetal movement
At a period of about 12 weeks, the fetus in the womb carries out its first movements. However, the baby is still very small, and it is almost impossible to feel them. But at 20 weeks the future mother can already feel how her child moves. In re-birth it occurs even earlier - at 18 weeks. Based on the date of the first movements of the baby, you can determine the expected date of birth.
Is it possible to determine the exact date of birth?
Despite the wide variety of methods for determining the date of birth, it is still impossible to calculate the exact date. Not all women give birth to a doctor's time. Pregnancy can last 38, 39 or 40 weeks, and any of the options is considered the norm. In addition, the setting of the date of delivery is affected by the features of the course of pregnancy and various diseases in women, such as diabetes, hypertension and so on.