Ultrasound at 5.4 weeks

momofcpah

Go in tomorrow for an ultrasound. This will be my 2nd since Finding out I was pregnant. My doctor does an ultrasound when confirming pregnancy. I am extremely nervous (had a chemical pregnancy last year and on first ultrasound all they saw was thickening) on my first U/S this time they saw what they thought was a sac. Any advice as to what I should hope to see tomorrow?

HerHighness

I had one at 5.3 to make sure i wasnt further ahead than i thought (pcos and super light last period)

I saw gest sac and yolk sac. No fetal pole or heartbeat. There is a chance you will see more but also a chance you wont. If you dont please dont panic. Most likely you will get another in 2 weeks. 

MaddScientist

I would expect the same - to see a gestational sac and possibly the yolk sac. I don't think you would even see the fetal pole at 5w4d

So, not much. It is why they don't usually do them that early? Can I ask why you have already had 1 or are having 2 before 6 wks?

momofcpah

He does a routine ultrasound at first visit everytime.

Had my labs done that day (upon my request) and my hcg was 236 and progesterone was 13.

With my chemical last year Hcg was only 30 and progesterone was 2. So I feel like this is good news.
This will be my 4th child and I have never had any issues before last year conceiving. Just extremely nervous.

MissEm15

At 5w3d (by my count) I had 2 gest. sacs, 2 yoke sacs and 2 fetal poles (although I didn't really see it all)... but no heartbeats yet.

MaddScientist

a single HCG number won't tell you much, it is the doubling/increasing that is most informational. I understand you are nervous, but I don't think 2 ultrasounds this early will ease your mind any, as you can't see much, and the risk of miscarriage doesn't decrease significantly until after you hear a heartbeat.

momofcpah

Thank you so much for that. Really eases my mind.

momofcpah

But maybe seeing just the yolk sac would make my nerves a little better. It's a lot further than I got last pregnancy.

LilTiger15

For my pregnancy with my son, I had an u/s at 6 weeks 1 day and saw the heartbeat.

MaddScientist

randistarr said:

Thank you so much for that. Really eases my mind.

I am not trying to be mean. Let me clarify my response for you.

1. you have not indicated any other symptoms of impending miscarriage (ie. cramps+bleeding)
2. you have already had 1 ultrasound in which you have seen the sac - indicating that you are developmentally where you should be at this point (~5wks)'

Most of the women on here that have had early ultrasounds are either monitored by an RE (i.e. on medication, IVF, etc.) or need dating ultrasounds (like PP). You don't seem to fall into the first category, and you have had a dating ultrasound already. Thus, a 2nd u/s at this point would be superfluous. It will not give you more information than you already have

To ease your anxiety I would suggest to
1. wait until you are further along and would reasonably be expected to see a heartbeat for a 2nd u/s
2. get repeat betas checked - to see that your HCG is increasing appropriately in a set amount of time, which might be more informative for you at this point.

development is very different early on - and you might not see a yolk sac if you are off on your dates even a day or 2, so it might be more anxiety inducing than just waiting.

A lot of us have had previous losses (myself included @ 5w3d no less), so really we do understand your anxiety. However, and you probably don't want to hear this, but only time will determine if everything is 'ok'. You are going to just have to just wait it out.

wintersong139

randistarr said:

He does a routine ultrasound at first visit everytime. Had my labs done that day (upon my request) and my hcg was 236 and progesterone was 13. With my chemical last year Hcg was only 30 and progesterone was 2. So I feel like this is good news. This will be my 4th child and I have never had any issues before last year conceiving. Just extremely nervous.

So weird. Does insurance even pay for that for everyone?

OmSweetOm

It's so hard to wait, I sympathize. I'd get an ultrasound every day if I could... However, I myself and victim if unnecessary stress from not seeing anything. I second the idea if getting repeat betas. It will help, for now. I've gotten 5!!

Izzy0927

I had a u/s at 5w5d, and they saw a yolk sac, gest sac, and a fetal pole. It was too soon for a heartbeat, but I went back at 7w1d and there was a heartbeat. I think it's all a little iffy what they see at that point just based on how small things are and the equipment they're using.

momofcpah

My insurance paid in full for everything last time. I had an ultrasound at first visit and ultrasound at the start of miscarriage and it paid in full. Everyone's insurance is different though. We have BCBS.

I did ask to have labs drawn and come back two days later for repeat and he simply stated that he would be able to tell more from an ultrasound? Like I said previously, this will be my 4th child... And all of this is very new to me. Until the pregnancy last year I had never had an u/s until at least my 7th week.

Side note: I had to change docs last year bc my other OB retired. So I just assumed an ultrasound upon first visit was routine for him?

jaztastic

MaddScientist said:

randistarr said:

Thank you so much for that. Really eases my mind.

I am not trying to be mean. Let me clarify my response for you.

1. you have not indicated any other symptoms of impending miscarriage (ie. cramps+bleeding)
2. you have already had 1 ultrasound in which you have seen the sac - indicating that you are developmentally where you should be at this point (~5wks)'

Most of the women on here that have had early ultrasounds are either monitored by an RE (i.e. on medication, IVF, etc.) or need dating ultrasounds (like PP). You don't seem to fall into the first category, and you have had a dating ultrasound already. Thus, a 2nd u/s at this point would be superfluous. It will not give you more information than you already have

To ease your anxiety I would suggest to
1. wait until you are further along and would reasonably be expected to see a heartbeat for a 2nd u/s
2. get repeat betas checked - to see that your HCG is increasing appropriately in a set amount of time, which might be more informative for you at this point.

development is very different early on - and you might not see a yolk sac if you are off on your dates even a day or 2, so it might be more anxiety inducing than just waiting.

A lot of us have had previous losses (myself included @ 5w3d no less), so really we do understand your anxiety. However, and you probably don't want to hear this, but only time will determine if everything is 'ok'. You are going to just have to just wait it out.

MaddScientist is 100% correct. We wish you the best, but don't expect to see too much.

OmSweetOm

I suppose if some docs have the u/s machine in office perhaps they do it standard and it's not always an insurance issue? (Ie- it's not reported as separate?) I have to go to the hospital outpatient radiology dept. so there's def no ultrasounds flying under the radar for me. I wish though!

Izzy0927

I will say this- my doctor had originally scheduled me for my u/s a week earlier (4w5d) only to rule out ectopic, but I requested to push it back a little to reduce ambiguity and anxiety if things were hard to see- they were fully in support of that. If you feel like you can tolerate any amount of uncertainty and disappointment for a week or more, then go for it. Otherwise, it's really stressful to be in limbo and wait for anther ultrasound.

Izzy0927

Sorry- double post

momofcpah

Hey Maddscientist- I hope you didn't think I was being a smart Alec. My post about "that really easing my mind" was in response to MissEm15. I know you aren't trying to be mean! I really appreciate your responses! This is my first time on this site so I'm still learning how to use it.

magsame

I just had a transvaginal u/s on Monday morning at the ER. They saw the sac, yolk but no fetal pole visible at the time. I was 5 w 1d. So don't expect much.

momofcpah

Just an update- went in this morning and they saw the Gest. Sac, yolk sac, and fetal pole! Too early for a heartbeat but everything looks great!

elephantsonpatrol

Yay!