When is best to visit Babes in the Womb for a scan
Answering your most common questions: When is the best time to come in for a scan?
One of the most common questions that we are asked here at Babes in the Womb is in regards to the timing of booking a scan. While we offer scans from as early as 8 weeks, right on up until 38 weeks, there is most definitely a best time for each of our scan packages.
During the earliest stages of pregnancy the earliest that we are actually able to visualize the embryo is from around the 8 week mark. As we scan over the tummy (rather than internally), we are often not able to see any traces of a new life growing prior to 8 weeks. If you were to book in for a scan with us too early, prior to 8 weeks, this often creates more stress for you rather than offering the reassurance that we strive to provide.
Typically the second scan sought by clients along the timeline of pregnancy is our gender scan, especially as some NHS hospitals will not offer this information. While we have determined gender from as early as 16 weeks, the best time to come in for this particular scan is from 17 weeks onwards as the accuracy of this scan improves greatly from this point. Often, if too early, the organs simply aren’t developed enough to offer you the solid answer you are seeking. While we understand that it is often difficult to find the patience to wait just those few extra weeks, we would rather offer you accurate information and do recommend that you wait it out until 17 weeks.
As pregnancy progresses, most clients are interested in having a 3D/4D scan. Again, timing is crucial for this scan as well. While we offer 3D/4D scans from 24-34 weeks, the best window for achieving the clearest 3D/4D footage is from around 26-28 weeks. Anything earlier than 24 weeks and your baby will simply not have yet packed on enough fat to give you the photos of cute, plump baby cheeks that everyone loves to see. However, at the other end, as your baby grows the amount of free space to move about and amniotic fluid levels decrease making it more difficult to capture a clear view of your wee one’s face.
Most importantly, whatever your stage of pregnancy, we have a scan package ready for you as we do also offer reassurance scans which can be booked at any point from 8 weeks all the way up to 38 weeks providing a glimpse of your baby as well as a comprehensive well-being check.
