Ultrasound screening for 1 trimester

Ultrasound screening of 1 trimester is a modern diagnostic method, which is performed with the help of ultrasound. This method of perinatal research is prescribed for all pregnant women in the first trimester at the 11-13 weeks gestation period for early diagnosis of possible fetal pathologies or provisional organs at an early stage of development. Ultrasound screening is the leader among other methods of diagnosing early development. It provides the maximum amount of information, is painless, and is harmless to the mother and the fetus.

Doctors can prescribe a combined screening: this includes not only ultrasound, but also a blood test to determine the changes that are detected in the presence of malformations in the fetus.

Why do you need ultrasound screening in 1 trimeter of pregnancy?

Screening ultrasound of the first trimester is designed primarily to determine the developmental defects of the nervous system, Down syndrome , Edwards and other gross defects. This study also provides an opportunity to determine whether all organs are available, in addition, measures the thickness of the cervical fold. If the reading deviates from the norm of ultrasound screening for 1 trimester - this indicates the presence of congenital malformations.

Also, the circulation of blood, the work of the heart, the length of the body, which should correspond to the norms established for a given period of development, is also examined. The quality of the research depends on the availability of modern equipment and competent specialists. In this case, you can examine more vital organs and get a more accurate result of the study.

Objectives of ultrasound in pregnant women in the first trimester

The optimal number of ultrasound for the entire period of pregnancy is considered 3-4 times, namely: at 11-13 weeks, at 21-22 week and at 32 or 34 weeks. In the first trimester it is carried out in order to:

• determine the duration of pregnancy;
• to determine the presence or absence of chromosomal abnormalities according to standard norms;
• eliminate the vices in the fetus, which are not compatible with life;
• measure the size of the nasal bones of the fetus; if at the end of the first trimester it is determined that the nasal bone is shortened or completely absent, this indicates 60% of cases of Down syndrome or other chromosomal abnormalities, and only 2% of children with such an anamnesis are healthy;
• to investigate also the forms of blood flow waves in the venous duct (if they are disturbed, then 80% of the fetuses have Down's syndrome and only 5% in this case have a normal set of chromosomes).

Among other things, ultrasound in the first trimester of pregnancy, but only after 11 weeks, can determine other gross developmental disorders, such as:

• umbilical hernia ;
• absence of development of the brain;
• correct operation of the four-chambered cut of the heart;
• The work of the bladder, which is visualized in 100% of the fruit in only 12 weeks.

Early diagnosis of no complex developmental anomalies in modern medicine allows for timely initiation of appropriate treatment, and in most cases, children grow up to be practically healthy. You can even say that these children do not differ from their peers.

The child grows rather quickly in the womb of the mother. And the only way to find out in the shortest possible time how he lives inside the mother is the results of ultrasound screening for the first trimester. It is this study that makes it possible to see the baby on the monitor and see how it develops, to determine the condition of the placenta and amniotic fluid.

It is not worth worrying about the harmfulness of ultrasound, since multiple experiments and tests have proven that ultrasound does not have a negative effect on the developing fetus and frequent ultrasound in the first trimester is not dangerous, you can conduct it as long as necessary.