9 Week Baby Scan

9 Week Baby Scan: What To Expect In This?

Voila! You are in the third month of your pregnancy, and we know that it is a huge journey. Even though you haven’t felt your baby move just yet, you will shortly do. Surely you want to learn as much as possible about your new little bundle of joy. Doctors typically suggest ultrasounds around the nine-week mark of pregnancy so they can get a better idea of the size of the developing baby. 

A 9-week baby scan allows the expectant parents to witness the first glimpse of the small ball with a heartbeat that will develop into their child. Continue reading to know more.

Why a 9 Week Baby Scan?

This scan is performed for the following purposes:

  • To ensure that the pregnancy is taking place inside the uterus and not somewhere else. 
  • To see if the fetus is properly situated inside the mother’s uterus.
  • The 9-week baby scan will be performed to monitor the baby’s heart rate, and it also aids the doctor in determining the health of the pregnancy.
  • Beginning at about the sixth week of pregnancy, a fetus’s heart will begin to beat. By the ninth week, his heartbeat is also detectable. 
  • A scan can assist find out what’s going on if you start bleeding or spotting during this time.
  • Pregnancies conceived through in vitro fertilization (IVF) require scans to ascertain implantation and viability for the parents.
  • In some cases, it might reveal the exact number of embryos your womb is holding. There is an ultrasound that can tell you if you’re having twins at 9 weeks.

How to Get Ready for the 9-Week Scan of Your Pregnancy?

In the first trimester of pregnancy, an abdominal scan may not be possible because your baby will be too little or too low in the uterus. Your doctor can perform a vaginal scan of the uterus. Before the scan, you should go to the bathroom and empty your bladder. A full bladder can obscure the image during the scan, so the nurse will likely ask you to go to the bathroom before beginning the procedure. To perform vaginal probing, you will need to strip completely. To prevent being completely undressed, you should wear loose attire, like a long shirt with slacks or loose pants.

What to Expect in a 9-Week Baby Scan?

  1. You will have a clear view of the fetus’s head, as well as body and limbs. Your unborn child is now a fetus and is no longer an embryo. 
  2. Your healthcare provider will check for subchorionic hematoma or bleeding surrounding the gestational sac.
  3. Also detectable in an ultrasound performed at the 9-week mark is the fetal heartbeat. Typically, it will range from 130 to 150 per second.

Visit Bump2Baby Scans to get detailed information on what can be expected during the 9-week baby scan. Our experts are always ready to help in the best possible way.