Ultrasound

We perform an ultrasound at this stage of pregnancy to confirm your due date, the number of embryos and to visualise the embryo’s heart beating. Prior to seven weeks, it’s usually too early to acquire this information.

The 11-14 week scan provides important information about a pregnancy. Your specialist can talk you through this in more detail.

A screening test shows if your baby is at an increased risk for Down syndrome and other chromosome abnormalities. Unfortunately, the screening test doesn’t provide a definitive answer—but it can tell us which babies have an increased risk of having Down syndrome. The results may help you decide whether or not to have further diagnostic testing during your pregnancy.

Screening tests are simple and non-invasive, but they do have out-of-pocket expenses for the ultrasound and blood test.

The 20-week scan is an important one. It provides crucial information about fetal anatomy, the position of the placenta, amniotic fluid volume, pelvic anatomy and cervix health.

Some patients may require a third-trimester ultrasound to check fetal growth and assess the position of their placenta. It’s also a useful way to review findings from prior ultrasounds.

Chorionic villous sampling is a procedure that collects a small sample of placental tissue. As the cells of the placenta have the same genetic material as the fetus, this tissue can be tested for genetic abnormalities such as Down syndrome.

Amniocentesis is a procedure in which a fine needle is passed through the maternal abdomen and uterine wall into the amniotic fluid around the fetus. This allows us to obtain a sample of the amniotic fluid. Because cells within the amniotic fluid have the same genetic material as the fetus, they can be tested for genetic abnormalities such as Down syndrome.