Baby moving too much for anatomy scan

==Mrs=Pagan=2015==

Hi there! Apologies if this is a repeat post, but I couldn't find anything on this. I'm wondering how common it is for the OB to not be able to finish the anatomy scan due to the baby flipping around so much? He was able to see the head and lady parts, a couple of the leg bones, but he didn't tell us anything about the organs like I'm reading about on here. He couldn't see the four chambers of the heart either because she just started moving around like crazy. Did anyone else have this experience? Next scan is in two months which seems like forever! So I'm trying to postpone the inevitable worry! Thanks!

mamavbs

Mine took an extra 40 minutes because the baby was being exactly the same. I ended up laying on my side for half of the scan, then going for a walk and fizzy drink before trying again.

Keep in mind they can only try so much before having to move on, cos of their schedule. So there's likely to be nothing wrong it's just they can't get the specific shot which puts things in the clear. :-)

JLW0504

I've known this to happen. It hasn't happened to me personally, but it could.

Next time you go in, try not to eat anything sugary, spicy, etc. Also, try not to drink anything too cold, sugary, caffeinated, etc.

AmoLovesAud

I had the opposite problem; little girl was lying on her side, squishing her left arm, and would NOT budge no matter how many times I got up to pee or rolled from side to side.  We couldn't get a profile shot and they couldn't take every picture of her heart that they need, so I have to go back in this week.  But everything they did manage to get looked fine, she's just stubborn (did the same thing at my last ultrasound, too, every time the u/s tech found her she'd wiggle out of sight.  Guess she's camera shy!)

==Mrs=Pagan=2015==

Thanks all...I'm a little peeved that my OB didn't suggest rolling on my side or moving around...he didn't try very hard. He's always in a rush, it seems I guess I just have to play the waiting game till 28 weeks!

Ceridwen77

I also had the opposite problem - baby was being too lazy and wouldn't untuck his/her feet from under the bum. So no genital shots (we are team green so only care for validation everything is healthy), couldn't get full foot/leg shots and the way baby was positioned could not get all heart shots needed. They made me wait 4 weeks for a follow-up!! Next Monday is the day.

A friend had to have 3 AS due to the baby being too wild! She said she drank caffeine and had sugar before her scans. So that's why I ate bland food before mine, which didn't work out well for me. So there's a fine line - next time I'm gonna have a little fruit just to get baby moving a bit. Hopefully it doesn't backfire!!

VexyMommy

Ceridwen77 said:

I also had the opposite problem - baby was being too lazy and wouldn't untuck his/her feet from under the bum. So no genital shots (we are team green so only care for validation everything is healthy), couldn't get full foot/leg shots and the way baby was positioned could not get all heart shots needed. They made me wait 4 weeks for a follow-up!! Next Monday is the day. A friend had to have 3 AS due to the baby being too wild! She said she drank caffeine and had sugar before her scans. So that's why I ate bland food before mine, which didn't work out well for me. So there's a fine line - next time I'm gonna have a little fruit just to get baby moving a bit. Hopefully it doesn't backfire!!

You could always try bringing a little cold juice with you in case you need it. 

A&A9222012

This happened during ours. The baby kept moving everytime the tech went to get the measurement. My husband and I also felt that she was in a rush because we were her last appointment of the day and did not try to me try different positions. She told us it was just the baby moving too much but then went and told the doctor she was having a hard time seeing things so he is sending us to the high rosk doctor for a scan. So another week of waiting for us

Ceridwen77

VexyMommy said:

Ceridwen77 said:

I also had the opposite problem - baby was being too lazy and wouldn't untuck his/her feet from under the bum. So no genital shots (we are team green so only care for validation everything is healthy), couldn't get full foot/leg shots and the way baby was positioned could not get all heart shots needed. They made me wait 4 weeks for a follow-up!! Next Monday is the day.

A friend had to have 3 AS due to the baby being too wild! She said she drank caffeine and had sugar before her scans. So that's why I ate bland food before mine, which didn't work out well for me. So there's a fine line - next time I'm gonna have a little fruit just to get baby moving a bit. Hopefully it doesn't backfire!!

You could always try bringing a little cold juice with you in case you need it. 


Yeah that's a good point. I always go to my appointments with my water bottle (so thirsty all the time), so why not bring some juice?! Thanks for the tip.

HeatherFaye718

That happened to me too. Layer on both sides a couple times and our little boy still wouldn't move. We were unable to get a good view of his heart so we have to go back in.

katrinasmith17

My baby was moving too much as well . I have to go back this week to hopefully finish the scan.

LSRoo

Mine was also an extra 30 minutes because the baby was breech and curled up on his side so the tech couldn't see one of the arteries they needed to see. They had me wait a half an hour and the dr came in and tried again. Luckily he cooperated and they saw what they needed to see.

CarrieOct15

Mine went a little longer because our LO was in a bad position. The tech had us get up and walk around for a while, and then they tried again. As far as I know, they got all the shots they wanted, though. 

If your OB feels they need some more pictures, I'm sure they will order some. If not, they probably saw everything they needed to, and don't have any concerns.

jscasher

My scan is this Friday so I'm making mental notes for all of your suggestions! I hope baby boy cooperates.

thefithuntress

I gotta wait a week but she's already a squirmy wormy. I have a feeling we're gonna be there for a while/have to go a couple times. 

katiedhunter

My second DS was like that, my initial us tech couldn't get it all, but they got me to come back in like 3 days.

rachswi

Our son is a crazy bouncy ball who loves to move. Ironically, he was almost perfectly still during the anatomy scan (even being so polite as to spread his legs perfectly wide), but he refused to move his hand from his face.

I'm guessing if the Doc doesn't want you back for a scan within the next few days, then they got the shots that they were most worried about and have no reason to think they need to do more shots sooner rather than later.

DrMommaDVM

The tech couldn't get a good view of a couple of things with ours because she was just tucked into a ball right on my cervix the whole time. Like with her arms around her head the way you would for a tornado drill or something. I guess sometimes they are just not cooperative.

Elyse1384

rachswi said:

Our son is a crazy bouncy ball who loves to move. Ironically, he was almost perfectly still during the anatomy scan (even being so polite as to spread his legs perfectly wide), but he refused to move his hand from his face.

I'm guessing if the Doc doesn't want you back for a scan within the next few days, then they got the shots that they were most worried about and have no reason to think they need to do more shots sooner rather than later.

Ditto.  This LO moves around like crazy throughout the day yet at the anatomy scan... no such luck.  Tucked into an unfortunate position and unwilling to move for anything.  Mostly the head shots the tech struggled with.  That said, despite the tech being quite convinced I would need to go back (the same happened with my DS), I didn't need to.  They got the shots they needed to make my OB happy so perhaps the same will happen for you (OP) despite the opposite problem (too active a baby) presenting itself. 

maurahalp

Yes we encountered the photo shy baby too. Our baby was tucked up with their back facing out so there were difficulties getting the heart shots. Then for the head/neck shots they would wiggle so much the tech found those hard too! We were lucky in that the tech kept trying and in the end we got them all but it took over the hour.... I also felt really sorry for the lady after me because she would have been waiting with a full bladder for way longer than she thought- if you're out there I'm sorry!!

karenelaine74

I had to go back for a second scan a couple of weeks ago because baby moved too much at first but then she got into her favourite position which is her back against my abdomen so the sonographer couldn't complete her heart checks. And a friend of mine has just had the same thing happen to her and is going back again next week, so it seems to be more common than you might think, perhaps? You can't help but worry though but in the end it meant I got to go and see my baby again so it was a nice thing

nataliejayne85

I also had the same thing happen , baby is obviously taking after daddy and being a pain in the ass already!!

nataliejayne85

^^ only posted half of what I wrote!!!
We have to go back in 4w to get a better look at babies spine as they were not moving for anyone!! We were told everything looks good and it's pretty normal to have to go back if they cannot see everything first time. I'm pretty excited about seeing the LO again!!

Pontot31

With my daughter it took more than an hour because she wouldn't cooperate. The tech had me rolling from side to side and standing up. I even got sent to the bathroom twice to see if emptying my bladder would help. None of it did. We still had to go back.
I go a week of Wednesday with this one and considering how much it fights the doppler I have a feeling it could be another long one.

Jaimee1017

I was in there for over an hour because my little one wouldn't move into the right position. He was moving too much, but just not the right way to be able to see his spine properly. I had to roll over onto my side to try and encourage him to change his position. He did, but only for a minute before moving again. Luckily I was the last appointment of the day and no one was waiting behind me.

helsbels222

Mine is Thursday and I was going to bring DS. If there is a possibility of it being a real lengthy one then I may have to re think that.

Pontot31

helskos said:

Mine is Thursday and I was going to bring DS. If there is a possibility of it being a real lengthy one then I may have to re think that.

We are bringing my daughter. I'm taking the iPad and some snacks. She will love seeing the baby so I think it'll be ok. I hope!

helsbels222

Pontot31 said:

helskos said:

Mine is Thursday and I was going to bring DS. If there is a possibility of it being a real lengthy one then I may have to re think that.

We are bringing my daughter. I'm taking the iPad and some snacks. She will love seeing the baby so I think it'll be ok. I hope!

Good idea! Yay for electronic babysitters

jasbaby2

I am surprised they didn't want to bring you back in a couple weeks.

oliarnmom1517

helskos said:

Pontot31 said:

helskos said:

Mine is Thursday and I was going to bring DS. If there is a possibility of it being a real lengthy one then I may have to re think that.

We are bringing my daughter. I'm taking the iPad and some snacks. She will love seeing the baby so I think it'll be ok. I hope!

Good idea! Yay for electronic babysitters

Shoot half the time I use my kindle as an electronic babysitter for myself!!! Mostly because I hate sitting there with nothing to do..

Ceridwen77

rachswi said:

I'm guessing if the Doc doesn't want you back for a scan within the next few days, then they got the shots that they were most worried about and have no reason to think they need to do more shots sooner rather than later.

This isn't necessarily true. Due to my baby's position they couldn't get some key shots, but they didn't reschedule me for 4 weeks. The reason being they can then not only use that second ultrasound to get the missing photos, but they can use it as an additional tool to measure growth. Essentially, we have to do another one anyway, so why not get the most data possible from it?

whitney25craig

I hate to say that this makes me feel good but they couldn't get a profile or see the nasal bone they also had a few minor concerns so now I have to see a high risk doctor which just sounds scary right??

kwaldy

Had to chime in on this one. Just had my A/S at 22 weeks and my baby was in such a weird position she couldn't get all the shots she needed and the baby would NOT move to allow her to see anything.
The baby started punching where I could feel it after about 45 mins of probing, and I took it as a "get the f*** off of me" kind of deal lol.
Also, the tech could not confirm the sex which was frustrating... I know it's unimportant and not the real reason for these things, but when everything else was looking healthy, it was a great perk to look forward too. We were told "maybe a girl" at an elective ultrasound, so we were hoping that the baby would be more cooperative this time around and if anything baby was less cooperative. Stubborn kid...

oliveoil95

Ohmygosh this just happened to me. I went in around 9:15 and left around 10:45. They didn't even get all the shots they needed. The baby was moving like crazy. And they had 3 different techs try to get the needed pictures and there was no cooperation. It was tough. The baby's legs were crossed so I couldn't know the sex. Then the baby had their hands covering their face the entire time.

Needless to say I'm going back this week. I guess I was lucky and didn'to have as long as a wait as some of you guys.

suzandgreg

I'm the same - our little girl was head down facing my back and would not move. They said I just needed to come back between 2-4 weeks and since I like having my US appts on the same day as my midwife appt, then I chose to have it down at the 4 week mark.

HeatherFaye718

Had my follow up scan last week and we got a "good enough" picture of my son's nose and lips. He covered his face the entire time and would not show us. Lol.

shelljok

This happened with my DD and my current pregnancy with my twins. Each time they couldn't see the facial structure (mostly nose and mouth region) or all chambers of the heart bc they moved too much. So I just went back 1 month later and they were able to see all those things. I never let it worry me too much bc they were always measuring correctly and everything they did see was normal and my doctor actually said not getting a good look at those particular things at the 20 week scan is pretty common.

brownloveone

I just had my a/s on Wed. This was with the specialist because we tested positive for trysomy 18 during the quad but after further testing and another u/s turns out everything is fine. So on Wed the baby would not cooperate either. He was balled up and also kept putting his hand on his face. After an hour of poking and moving I ended up with a pic of a foot and a wee wee. I have to go back and get another a/s in September

AKF*WHH2

Same here! First scan at 20 weeks was supposed to take 40 mins, but took 90 & was incomplete. Had to go back 2 weeks later so they could get the heart pictures they needed. It took another 90 minutes & all kinds of crazy tactics for them to get pictures that would pass radiologist inspection. It was nuts! Didn't have this issue w/DS #1 and he's a wild child...odd!! Don't fret. I'm sure all is well!