Early pregnancy ultrasound scan, week 10+0 – 13+6

​The scan may be vaginal or abdominal. Your bladder should be empty. The scan includes determining the duration of pregnancy / due date and the number of fetuses and checking the heart rate. Fetal structures are checked at a general level, and upon the mother’s request, the examination can also include nuchal translucency screening (related to screening of chromosomal defects). Aberrant results detected in the nuchal translucency screen can sometimes be an early indication of a fetal structural abnormality. 

Even though the mother will not feel the baby’s movements until close to mid-pregnancy, the foetus begins moving in the womb around week eight of pregnancy. In early pregnancy, the foetus keeps moving between active periods and rest all the time. When it is awake it flings it arms and kicks around – there's still enough room in the womb even for throwing somersaults.  
 
 

Appointments

 

Call to the following hospitals, if you are going to have your scan there:
 
  • Hyvinkää Hospital tel. (019) 4587 2349 (Mon-Thu 2 p.m. - 4 p.m. and Fri 2 p.m. - 3 p.m.)
  • Lohja Hospital tel. (019) 380 1417 (Mon-Fre 1 p.m. - 2.30 p.m.)
  • Porvoo Hospital tel. (019) 548 3105 (Mon-Fre 8.30 a.m. - 11 a.m.)

 

Women’s Hospital and Jorvi Hospital invite patients on referral from the prenatal clinic.

Prenatal screenings from the maternity clinics in Women’s Hospital and Jorvi Hospital are centered to downtown Helsinki, HUS Prenatal Screening Unit on Bulevardi  

 

Combination screening

 
The public health nurse at the prenatal clinic will inform you about the screenings. Screening for tri-somy 21 (Down’s syndrome) is carried out using a so-called combination risk assessment method that takes into account the mother’s age.
 
A blood sample is drawn from the mother during pregnancy week 9-11 and the fetus’ size (head to bottom measurement) and nuchal translucency are assessed via an ultrasound scan at pregnancy week 11-13+6. In practice, the mother will give a blood sample at the laboratory before the early pregnancy ultrasound scan. The Maternity Health Clinic makes a reservation for the laboratory test  for a pregnancy week 10+0 calculated from the menstrual period. This way it is made sure that the blood sample is not taken too early nor too late. For the same reason the appointment for the ultrasound scan is aimed for the preagnancy weeks 11+5 - 13+0.  The combination screening method can detect 80 percent of above-mentioned chromosomal abnormalities.
 
Any further examinations are performed at the Fetomaternal Medical Center in Women's Hospital.
 
 

Additional information

 
  •  National Institute for Health and Welfare:  "Prenatal screening: a guide for expectant parents"
    The guide contains information about the early general ultrasound scan and screening tests for chromosomal and structural abnormalities. Link to the guide.
  •  National Institute for Health and Welfare: "Further testing after prenatal screening"
    The guide is for pregnant mothers whose babies are suspected to have chromosomal or structural abnormalities. Link to the guide.
     

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