
What happens during the 20-week anatomy scan?

Important to know before you head into your scan: Very few babies showing soft markers (choroid plexus cyst, echogenic foci or pyelectasia, to name an unpronounceable few) end up having an abnormality.

What does the 20-week anatomy scan look at?Ī level 2 ultrasound focuses closely on fetal anatomy to be sure everything is growing and developing as it should images are much clearer and more detailed than the fuzzy ultrasound you might have gotten in your first trimester. If you have a condition that needs to be monitored (such as carrying multiples), you may have more than one detailed ultrasound. True to its name, the 20-week anatomy scan is performed in the second trimester of pregnancy, and can be done anytime between 18 weeks and 22 weeks. At this appointment, a trained sonographer will perform a detailed anatomy scan.Įven if you had a first-trimester (level 1) sonogram to confirm or date your pregnancy, or as part of a first-trimester screening test, the more detailed level 2 sonogram is important because of all the additional valuable information it gives your practitioner about what's going on with your baby. One caveat: you're not exactly seeing the hair your baby will be born with, but a sort of pre-hair called lanugo, which keeps your baby warm while they develop some insulating body fat.The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) says that women should get at least one sonogram in the second trimester of pregnancy, and virtually all practitioners now order an ultrasound anatomy scan for their moms-to-be. According to Parents, ultrasounds are so sensitive that they absolutely show baby hair, waving gently in an amniotic bath, often early in the third trimester.

Yes, an ultrasound paints your baby's picture in sound waves, but as it turns out, these machines are excellent these days (by week 32, you can see your baby's toenails, and by 39, eyelashes). So can you actually see hair on the ultrasound, or was my OB just trying to make me feel better about the fuzzy blob on the screen?

While I dutifully reported this to my family, it really didn't look like hair to me, and sonography is echolocation - what bats and dolphins use to get around - not the camera of your iPhone 6.
#4D ULTRASOUND PICTURES BEFORE AND AFTER BIRTH FULL#
One day, my OB pointed out a fuzzy shadow, and said my baby had a full head of hair. I looked forward to each and every one of mine with the enthusiasm of a kid headed to Disneyland. Let's be real for a minute - what's cooler than an ultrasound? Nothing.
