When can doc pick up heartbeat?

[Hellohellohowareyou]

Off to docs today to discuss a pregnancy related issue but just wondered whether she will try and listen to the heartbeat or whether I should ask her to?

I'm 15+2

[SueV14]

I could hear it at ca 8 weeks, while another doc told me that they don't do heart beat until 10 weeks. So feels free to ask her if she doesn't switch the sound in by herself. Good luck! :)

[worldgonecrazy]

You can ask but they may say no. It is difficult to find the heartbeat and can cause stress if the baby is playing hard to find.

The midwife once took 20 minutes to find my baby's heartbeat, and that was at 25 weeks. We knew she was okay because my tummy was moving like something out of alien as she dodged the ultrasound scanner, but if she had been towards the rear of the womb it would have been terrifying.

[Hellohellohowareyou]

Thanks for the replies, think I will ask and see what she says!

[Teeste]

At my 16 week appt last week, the midwife said guidelines are now not to listen the the heartbeat until 25 weeks!! She listened to mine anyway, no problems :)

[mum2benicole]

With my 1st it was 15 wks and picked up straight away and with 2nd was 16 wks and took bit longer im sure they say it depends which way baby is facing xx

[HoggleHoggle]

I have a 1 yr ds and my MW listened to heartbeat at 16 weeks in a routine appt. Took bloody ages to find though as she let the student find it first, and she didn't know what she was doing. Won't be repeating that mistake again, a ridiculous thing to allow.

[Hellohellohowareyou]

Yes I have my 16 week mw appointment next week so wondered if they would listen for it then.

[gamerchick]

Well students have to have hands on experience hoggle how would they learn otherwise?

You can say no to students though.

[HoggleHoggle]

Yes I know gamerchick. I have no issues with students. They were in all my appts and also during labour. I loved the one during my labour, she was incredibly kind. The only thing I said no to was her repeating an incredibly painful examination before I started pushing.

That being said, I don't think allowing a student to find a heartbeat for the parents first ever time of hearing it is overly fair. At 16 weeks you are still in the early stages and things can still easily go wrong. I wouldn't have minded the mw confirming it was there and then the student trying afterwards.

As it was, I had an excruciating 5 mins where both me and student started looking more and more sick when no heartbeat could be found. When mw finally took over it was clear the student has no idea what she was doing. She wasn't even pressing down on my stomach, it's like she expected to summon it through the lightest of touch.

[blackwidow74]

Always found mine between 10 and 12 weeks

[Chickenfillets]

I had an appointment at 14 weeks and she said don't worry if we can't find it, it's very unlikely we will at this stage, but she found it in seconds stronger and louder than ever

[gamerchick]

I have to agree with you there hoggle. It must be nerve wracking for them when they start.

[sleepybee]

I heard heartbeat for first time yesterday at 24 week midwife appointment

[eastcoastmum2014]

They don't listen to the heart beat until 22 weeks up here! There is always a risk they cant find the heart beat earlier because bub is too small and that could cause unnecessary stress on the parents! We heard our little ones hb at 18 weeks at a private gender scan so they can hear it earlier though I guess it depends on where you are being cared for :)

[weeblueberry]

In my practice the doctor won't even try to hear a heartbeat. I remember going in for sort of pregnancy related related reasons (high bp) last time and although I saw a doctor and ultimately ended up having to go to triage, she said she wasn't experienced enough to try and find it and didn't want to stress me out unnecessarily if she couldn't find it.

[Hellohellohowareyou]

I didn't even ask in the end as she mentioned it first, she just said she thought it was a bit early and didn't want to panic things If she didn't find it

[HoggleHoggle]

That's a shame for you hello though can see why she wouldn't want to cause unnecessary worry. Hope you hear the little one soon!

[Pandora37]

I'm sorry about that Hoggle, they should have explained to you that at 16 weeks it can take a while to find the heartbeat but it doesn't mean anything is wrong. It does take an age sometimes. Even if you can't find it that early it doesn't necessarily mean anything is wrong but of course we would always check it out to be sure.

NICE guidelines actually state that routine antenatal monitoring of the fetal heart shouldn't be offered because it has no predictive value of whether the baby is okay. That said, we always have a space for the FH in the notes and I imagine if we didn't fill it in we'd be told off. I don't know any midwives who don't offer it either.

I can understand why your doctor didn't listen OP, as I think for someone who rarely, if ever, listens to a heart rate that early it would be difficult for them to find.

[Christelle2207]

Round here they offer to check at 16wk apptmt though say they don't always find. My mw though had no trouble

[Cornberry]

I had a scan early due to abdominal pain at 5+3 and they detected a heart beat. My GP even commented on how amazing it was how early they could pick up a heartbeat nowadays. That was with internal scan, however. Don't know about being able to hear it so early so early.