Is Anomaly scan safe during pregnancy?

Pregnancy is one of the most beautiful experiences in life, but it is also riddled with a lot of unknowns. From the various changes, a woman’s body goes through to figuring out how to be responsible for another human being. There are so many new experiences and challenges that new parents have to face.

Starting from a simple blood and urine analysis to multiple ultrasounds over the duration of your pregnancy. As an expectant parent, especially if you are a first-time parent it is normal to be riddled with questions about the different tests, scans, and safety.

One of these tests is the anomaly scan. If you are worried about the safety of your baby? Rest assured that the anomaly scan is safe.

In this blog, we will be discussing some of the common concerns revolving around anomaly scan in detail. Make sure you read till the end to know more.

What is an Anomaly Scan?

The anomaly scan, also known as the 20-week ultrasound or level 2 ultrasound, evaluates the anatomic structures of the fetus, placenta, and maternal pelvic organs.

This scan is an essential and common part of routine prenatal care. This scan is performed between 18 and 21 weeks of pregnancy.

What can be detected at Anomaly Scan?

The 20-week screening scan examines the baby’s bones, heart, brain, spinal cord, face, kidneys, and abdomen in great detail. It enables the sonographer to look for 11 abnormal conditions.

The scan only searches for these conditions and cannot detect everything that is wrong. The conditions are anencephaly, open spina bifida, cleft lip, diaphragmatic hernia, gastroschisis, exomphalos, serious cardiac abnormalities, bilateral renal agenesis, lethal skeletal dysplasia, Edwards’ syndrome or also called T18 and Patau’s syndrome otherwise known as T13.

Does an anomaly scan affect the baby?

It may provide information that requires you to make important decisions. For example, you may be offered additional tests that carry a risk of miscarriage, and you must decide whether or not to have them. However, an anomaly scan is safe for you and your baby.

Do I need to worry about an anomaly scan?

The majority of scans are performed by specially trained personnel known as sonographers. If you are worried about pain, rest assured that – it is not painful to have the scan, but the sonographer may need to apply slight pressure to get the best views of the baby. This could be uncomfortable. But overall, the anomaly scan is safe.

Final Takeaway

An anomaly scan is safe for you and your baby. The administering doctor or healthcare practitioner will be able to analyse your baby’s development as well as find out any abnormalities early on in the pregnancy.

If you have questions about your baby’s development or your anomaly scan results, you can always talk to your healthcare provider about it.