My first ultrasound was at 13 weeks, at least that is what I'm suppose to be. We seen a heartbeat but the image was way to small to see anything else. He said it was about the size of a grain of rice. The Dr. said it isn't what you expect to see and gave a couple scenarios, like I was pregnant before, lost that one and am pregnant again..but I had no spotting what so ever, no cramping, and no sex since the + hpt! The Doctor didn't give me much to go one and didn't do anything else. He has scheduled me for another scan in 28 days and that is it. He says by then I will either miscarry, or the scan will show no heartbeat or a developing baby. I left with tons of questions and he said he just doesn't know and there's really no answers. Should I really have to wait a month to find out anything?! I hear others go in after a couple days for blood tests, more scans, etc...
He didn't measure anything that I'm aware of. Didn't even say how far along I looked to be, just that is looked about the size of a grain of rice. I work for a small family business and didn't have insurance and not a reg. doc. so when I became pregnant I found out I qualified for medical, medicaid? and now have coverage through that. After several 'mistakes' in the paperwork at their offices medical coverage finally started and by then I had a hard time choosing a dr. that wasn't full for my est. due date and one that took my 'insurance'. The only other Drs. I could try to see are an hour away from my home since my hometown doesn't do OB services anymore at our hosp. I'm just at a complete loss and have read stories that end in a miscarriage and ones that end with healthy babies, but all involved testing, scans, and bloodwork. This is only the first time I have seen this Doctor and don't know what I should have expected to happen or should happen now. I'm at a complete loss..
Find a new doctor this one has no kindness in him.
Even going to Planned Paenthood is a better idea than him. You will receive more compassionate care and some answers.
I disagree with calls for bloodwork and the works. If your pregnancy is not developing bloodwork may confirm that, however you would never terminate the pregnancy over "odd" bloodwork.
The best thing to do is indeed "wait and see" or what medical professionals call a watchful waiting approach. There is nothing to be gained from these expensive tests like daily HCG levels other than money in the OB/GYN's pockets.
In the first trimester of pregnancy there is no medical treatment that can "make" your baby develop normally... all of that testing is just done so the patient feels like their doctor has done "something", even though there is nothing that they can do.
I do however agree that you should find a different doctor. "the size of a grain of rice" is not a professional medical assessment. That ultrasound yielded valuable information that this doctor either refused to give you or was too lazy to extrapolate. That doctor just WASTED the money he is charging medicaid charging for an ultrasound and not properly reading the information. Even worse there are still some doctors out there that think their patients are too "stupid" to understand the results of a diagnostic test and simply don't want to "complicate things" AKA they don't want you "wasting their time" by asking legitimate questions about your health. Very sad, but true.
So you have a few options: find a different doctor to repeat the ultrasound and get a better assessment. Call this last doctor and ask to discuss the results of your ultrasounds...estimated age of the pregnancy (which these machines do AUTOMATICALLY) and any other questions you may have.
Two more things to consider: once you see a heartbeat on the ultrasound, the risk for miscarriage drops steeply AND home estimates of gestational age are very often wildly off.
Good luck!
I have miscarried twice and was high risk for my 4th child. Blood work won't tell you much. they can check progesterone (sp?) levels and they can check your hcg, that would take two or 3 tests over the span of about a week, to see if the numbers are going up or down. But all that will tell you is if you are going to miscarry, it won't prevent it, or say when, or anything else. Blood work is generally done if there is bleeding, or it is to early for an ultrasound, or if there is a history of losses or ectopics. It is not something that is standard, and not all doctors will do it for the same reasons.
As for another ultrasound, the measurements aren't going to change overnight, so a month doesn't seem odd at all. Frequent ultrasounds aren't standard either, most people only get 1 and it's around 28 weeks. Without a history of problems there just isn't a reason to do them frequently.
I know it's hard to wait and I truly understand the fear, but there is nothing and i mean nothing anyone can do but hope and pray and see what happens.
I am going to have to agree with Ina G in regards to the bloodwork.
The only thing that the bloodwork is going to tell you is what your hormones are doing and really nothing else. If the pregnancy is not viable there really isn't anything that can be done. If you do miscarry you will most likely know it. Hopefully you are just much earlier in the pregnancy that what you think you are.
My first pregnancy was ectopic. When I went in for my initial visit the pregnancy test was positive and they did an ultrasound but could not find anything in the uterus. The did immediately send me for blood work and after the blood work was completed (something like everyother day for a week) they called me (at work) to let me know that based on the blood work I was getting ready to miscarry and what I needed to do as soon as that happened.
I went back to the Dr. a few days later and they sent me to a radiologist who found the ectopic pregnancy which resulted in emergency surgery and the loss of a falopian tube.
My second pregnancy was detected VERY early and I went in immediately. The Dr. told me that the yolk sack was not properly developed and that I was most likely either in the process of miscarrying or would miscarry pretty soon. They again sent me for blood work which just verified that I was pregnant and that my hormones were good. That pregnancy resulted in a beautiful baby girl who is now 10 years old and my total and complete pride and joy.
I guess the moral of my story is that yes, they can send you in for bloodwork but it really isn't going to tell you a whole lot except whether or not your body is rejecting the fetus and sadly if it is rejecting the fetus there really isn't anything that can be done -sorry.
I would probably just wait the 28 days and then have the ultrasound redone. Personally I would be praying and very stressed until that time and I know that that time is going to feel like forever for you.
I do agree with the recommendations in finding a new Dr. if possible as yours sounds like an inconsiderate jerk but medically it sounds like he did what he could at this point.
Try to stay positive and not let this drive you absolutely to tears until your next ultrasound. You may just be much earlier in the pregnancy than what you think.
Prayers and warm thoughts to you!
What kind of doctor is this? Any OB worth his or her salt would agree to have you take the blood tests every few days to see if the hcg is elevating at the very least. They wouldn't leave you in a limbo like this.
He may very well be correct, and I hope he's not, but I think that you need to get a second opinion with a new OB. Even if you get the same answer, you need someone with a much better bedside manner and is willing to try to figure things out sooner rather than later.
Some doctors can be very dismissive, especially if they feel that a miscarriage is inevitable. I had one of those with my first pregnancy (that I lost). Even if the outcome is poor, find another doctor who will give you more than a shrug off.
Was this an OBGYN doc? Are you on state-funded health care, and therefore had no choice in the care you receive? This sounds like an answer you would get at a Planned PArenthood if you were 16 and pregnant, not as a married adult woman seeing her long-time OBGYN with whom there is a relationship.
You can't let anyone in healthcare determine YOUR best course of action with YOUR body. You need to have been sent for an HCG and Progesterone level immediately upon leaving the ultrasound. You then need to have those labs repeated in 48-72 hours. If the HCG at least doubles, then there is some hope, but either way, (miscarriage inevitable or not) you deserve to be treated with more compassion than that.
Since it can take weeks to get in with a new OB, I believe your first action to take should be to call the current doctor's office, and let them know you would like your labs done tomorrow, and how should you go about obtaining the lab slip for the HCG and Progesterone levels. Then let them know that you will be needing them repeated in 2-3 days, so you need that lab slip as well. If they don't agree, then you will have no recourse except to find a new OB ASAP.
Good luck. This doctor should absolutely not be practicing medicine if this is the disregard with which he treats his patients.
find another dr. , sounds like you arent as far along as the dr. thinks, but find another dr.
K. h.
I think I'd have to see another doctor! I don't think I could wait another 28 days!
So sorry you are going through this. Hugs to you and yours!
This is bizarre!!! You need bloodwork and what is the measurements on the baby?? Maybe they can send you to a higher tech ultrasound place.
I would find a new doctor! He sounds like he does not know what to do! I'm so sorry you are having to go through this!!!
I'm so sorry that you have to go through this. I went through a miscarriage in 2005.
I would call the dr. back and ask for another ultrasound in 10 - 14 days. If there is a 'new' pregnancy, the u/s will show growth by that many days.
It was very similar. In my situation the fetus stopped growing, they thought they heard a heartbeat. Turns out the heartbeat they heard was mine. My body did not let go on its own and I ended up receiving a D&C.
NEW DOCTOR- grain of rice isnt a measuement. if he could see it through a regular ulrasound and not internal it seems you are the right size.
I remember i was high risk and had to do internals until 12 weeks because before that it wasnt abe to pick up the baby
also bloodowork IS NEEDED so if you have low hormones and so on they will know what to put you on next time! I had low progestrone levls miscarried and next time I was put on meds and got Emmy. I'm paranoid so I'd either do a new Dr or go to the ER and say your having abdominal pain and they will examine you and the baby and it will be covered under insurance
