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Pregnancy: Midwife Checks
During the course of your pregnancy, you’ll have frequent appointments with a midwife so they can check up on your progress and ensure everything is as it should be.
Your first antenatal or midwife check – what’s known as the booking visit – will be when you’re between 11 and 13 weeks pregnant. You may have to attend the appointment at your GPs surgery, at a hospital clinic or the midwife may visit you at home. This first visit is important, as it will give the midwife and opportunity to find out about you, your health, lifestyle and medical history, and your pregnancy. It also gives you the chance to ask any pressing questions.
Your midwife will ask questions about your health and lifestyle, such as whether you smoke or drink, what your medical history is like and whether there are any health issues connected to the rest of your family that they should be aware of. A few basic checks will also be carried out including:
- Your blood pressure will be taken.
- Your may be weighed and your height may be measured.
- Your heart and lungs may be checked.
- A blood sample will be taken. This will determine what your blood type is, whether you’re rhesus positive or negative, if you’re immune to rubella and if you’re anaemic.
- A urine sample will be taken. This will be tested to ensure you don’t have any urinary tract infections and to see if you have any sugar or protein in your urine.
- The midwife may ask to feel your stomach in order to get an idea of your uterus size.
Subsequent Checks
Guidelines from the National Institute of Clinical Excellence (NICE) advise that, after the booking visit, women who are pregnant for the first time and are having a straightforward pregnancy have 10 more midwife checks. These are at approximately 16, 18-20, 25, 28, 31, 34, 36 38, 40 and, if you haven’t already had your baby, at 41 weeks.
If you’ve already had a baby and your pregnancy is uncomplicated, then you should have seven midwife checks. These take place at about 16, 18-20, 28, 34, 36, 38 and 41 weeks.
You won’t necessarily see the same midwife all the way through your pregnancy. Although some areas do offer a service where women get appointed a single midwife who’ll care for them all through pregnancy, in many areas it’s normal to see a range of different people. Of course, if you have any concerns or worries in between these checks, then it’s fine to contact your midwife or GP for reassurance.
Throughout the rest of your pregnancy, you’ll also be offered various other tests and checks. These include:
- Ultrasound scans. Early on, they’ll be a dating scan to try and determine a due date for your baby. Then they’ll be another scan at about 18-20 weeks to ensure your baby is developing well and determine the position of the placenta.
- Blood tests. You’ll be offered more blood tests which form part of the screening tests you’ll be offered. The Alphafeto Protein Test screens for spina bifida and the double, triple or quadruple test screens for Down’s syndrome.
- Diagnostic tests. You’ll also be offered diagnostic tests which help show if your baby has a higher risk of having conditions such as spina bifida or Down’s syndrome. This includes tests such as amniocentresis and chorionic villus sampling.
If you’ve having twins, then the tests offered may vary.
Rachel Newcombe
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