anyone told their dates are wrong? (a mystery)

Dani816

so apparently the nurses at the nicu are convinced that my ob had mia's dates wrong. (they've been saying this since this beginning). i wish this was the case because it would explain a lot, but i'm not sure it's possible. it's become a bit of a mystery. . .

i remember we had just started TTC, so i paid attention to our timing. (sorry if TMI, but i happen to know that the 19th was the last time we had sex before i tested positive). then i tested positive on december 1st.

has anyone else heard this about their baby? how common is this? anyone mathematically inclined or know how to figure this out?

mcdev

According to my OB, my daughter was born at 27 weeks however the NICU doctors firmly believed her to be more characteristic of a 25 weeker.  My math tells me that she is a 25 weeker, but she was completely an unplanned pregnancy so it is acceptable to me that I could be wrong.  My OB is insistent that there is no way their dating could be two whole weeks off.  What does this all mean?  Nothing in the end.  During her NICU stay, the Drs always aligned her with 25 weekers and when people ask me now, I always say 27 weeks.  I guess we'll never really know.  

Sweets2005

Well how off are they saying the dates are?  My doctor told me my dates were wrong (with this baby) but it was only by 5-7 days. They go by your LMP which is ridiculous since everyone is different and in my case, my cycles are long and the only time we did the deed that month was Valentine's day, lol.

Anywho... (just wondering) why do the nurses care if they think the dates are off? Will it affect her care? I'm just curious why you ask and why it matters, not trying to be snarky but I don't quite understand and maybe I can help better with more details.

Dani816

the only reason it "matters" (to some extent) is that she's supposedly 41 weeks and feeding is the only thing still keeping her at the NICU. and nobody can figure out why.

it actually would affect her treatment plan because, had she been a younger baby, they would explain her feeding struggles through her age and not assume it is some type of brain damage or deficiency. she would just "make sense." her MRI did come back normal, but, according to the neurologist, she had the brain of a "younger baby." again, if she IS a younger baby that is a lot less scary than if her brain is immature for some medical reason. this way, she needs to be followed by a neurologist.

i understand we'll probably never know for sure. i was just wondering if it's even a possibility (given what we do know).

boolos2B05

My OB had me at 35wk3d when I had my DD. But the Neo's had her at
34wks.

njdcgirl

Yes, many thought my dates were wrong when I had DS.  (He was bigger than most 23w5d babies).  Since I had IVF, and know the exact day/hour of conception, I knew my dates were right, and clued them in on it too!

 

hailie

With this pregnancy my dates were off.  Going my LMP I should be 18 weeks, I'm really only 16w 3d.  Based on the the measurements taken at our first ultrasound the doctor changed my due date from Feb 1 to Feb 13. I *think* they change your due date if you are more than 7-10 days off.  Did you have a growth ultrasound in the beginning of your pregnancy to date it?

Sweets2005

Dani816:

the only reason it "matters" (to some extent) is that she's supposedly 41 weeks and feeding is the only thing still keeping her at the NICU. and nobody can figure out why.

it actually would affect her treatment plan because, had she been a younger baby, they would explain her feeding struggles through her age and not assume it is some type of brain damage or deficiency. she would just "make sense." her MRI did come back normal, but, according to the neurologist, she had the brain of a "younger baby." again, if she IS a younger baby that is a lot less scary than if her brain is immature for some medical reason. this way, she needs to be followed by a neurologist.

i understand we'll probably never know for sure. i was just wondering if it's even a possibility (given what we do know).

 

Oh, okay, I see. But really dates could only be "wrong" give or take a couple weeks, at most, and in the grand scheme of things, a 41 weeker should feel relatively the same as a 39 weeker, no? I hope you can figure out those feeding issues so LO can come home!

my*heart*is*his

Not exactly. I had my first DD at 34w, 2d and I know her gestational age was that for certain (within a day or so) b/c I had an IUI, so depending on when fertilization occurred, etc. it could be off by a day. When I went into PTL, the hospital was not that concerned and I delivered DD by routine delivery with routine post-birth care for DD - no NICU, just a carseat test since she was just over 5 lbs.

My OB said later that I was actually measuring as 35+ weeks, which was why they didn't go to extra precautions at the birth. I would say it could be fairly common, since measurements and actual date of conception/gestational age may not match up.

Rachel&Joe

if you had any early ultrasounds during pregnancy, those are the most accurate (around 6-8 weeks).  i know to the day how old stella was when she was born (28 weeks, 3 days).  my OB insisted she was a 29 weeker (based on my LMP) but my cycles are a bit longer (I O on CD 18 instead of 14).  But again, like sweets is saying, a couple of weeks shouldn't make that much of a difference.  a 39 week baby's brain would look the same as a 41 week baby's brain, you know?  sorry you guys are having such a hard time.

FisMom

I can see that early on it would have made a difference in care if your DD was younger. At this point, I have to agree that even if your dates were two weeks off, she's be 39 weeks. 39 weekers and 41 weekers are not that different.

That said, with my pregnacy, if I went by LMP date, then I was due on July 31. OB had me at August 3 based on ultrasound at 8 weeks. I thought based on the day I ovulated and when I had sex that my due date should have been August 7. It's all give or take a week or two, that's probably why 37 weeks is considered full term and docs don't panic if you are a few days late.

stevenkramer48

My baby measured behind for weight the entire pregnancy before I went into PTL. My DD spent a ton of time in the NICU and acts like a newborn at home and she has been home for three weeks. It kills me because I feel she should be doing way more but is not.

My current pregnancy is already measuring behind and Friday I go in for another ultrasound because they saw something on my last one? Yet I had an amnio and that came back fine, so not sure what is going on

I hear more often than not to give or take two weeks on most normal fullterm babies. So I would think for us preemie moms, two weeks or more could be off. It is so confusing and the nurses at times seem to understand better than the doctors:)

witt0198

I agree with the early ultrasound comment.

I have thought on more than one occasion while reading your posts that she sounds like a baby who's dates were off, but who knows.