A week ago I hit 30 weeks. And I also had my first biophysical profile. Well, half of it at least. I had an ultrasound that looked for a variety of things over an up-to 30 minute examination: 30 seconds of breathing, 3 big movements, 3 little movements, and a fluid measurement.
It was quite possibly the most stressful ultrasound I’ve ever had.
I went in expecting nothing but good news—this baby has been super active, and I had no reason to think that they would find something abnormal at 30 weeks that somehow was missed in all of my other ultrasounds. But then the ultrasound started and the tech said NOTHING. NOT A WORD. And in my experience, silence during an ultrasound is a bad thing. So I started freaking out. “Is everything okay?!” I asked. She was like, “I don’t see anything yet, I’m just getting started.” But I scanned the screen and was sure I saw a heartbeat. So I calmed down. For a minute. Still silence. I started getting nervous again. “Any concerns?” She was super unfriendly, “I have to count and I need silence to concentrate.” So I just sat there, fretting and stressing, until she was like, “and we’re done.”
Jeez! Talk about bad bedside manner. So I passed, I guess. She didn’t say anything about the exam. The only thing I managed to get was baby’s heartrate—142bpm.
My husband is worried that the ultrasound is going to do some harm to the baby, but the doctors do not seem concerned. From what I’ve read, though, it’s not clear that BPP actually has any value. My doctor said that if you have a normal BPP, the chances of not having a stillbirth in the next week are 99.9%. (Based on what I’ve read, that might be the same risk without a BPP.)
At least one article suggests that “There was no difference between the groups in the number of babies that died, nor in the number of babies who had low Apgar scores [between high-risk pregnancies that do a BPP and those that do not]. However, although the number of women involved was small, the BPP was associated with a significant increase in induction and caesarean section. However, the data are insufficient to reach a conclusion about the benefit or otherwise of the BPP as a test of fetal wellbeing.”
Apparently I should end up with a “score,” but she didn’t say anything:
I had another one yesterday, and it went much better. Partly because I knew what to expect, and partly because baby was going totally bananas before the appointment event started. He kept it up and the whole thing literally took three minutes—he kicked the probe off of my stomach at one point.
I asked about the score this time, and she said that if I don’t get 8/8 they go on to do additional monitoring.
After the appointment, I met with one of the doctors. She was great. She told me not to stress about my weight, noting I was “lean” before I got pregnant, that my blood pressure is really good, and saying if I exercise every day that’s great. Baby’s heartrate was in the 130s, exactly where it should be.
I’m 31 weeks in 1 day. It’s hard to believe!
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