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is there any worries being told baby's head & tummy is big at 28 weeks?

4 replies

brightonbleach · 06/08/2009 13:11

hi gang, just as I thought I was going fairly smoothly through my 1st pregnancy - well, after being diagnosed with diabetes at 15 weeks :-)) Probably nothing to worry about, just wondered if anyone had any epxeriences to share or advice: having scans every 3 weeks due to diabetes and thyroid disease, growth scan this week (28weeks) showed him to be in the 80th percentile and they said the head was pretty big and the tummy too! is this unusual or worrying??

His weight is showing at 2lbs 7 and measurements of head 266.0mm and tummy 242.0mm. they seemed a little concerned (hard to tell as they're so rushed!) and have another growth scan in 3 weeks.

at the nuchal fold scan earlier in pregnancy they said brain and skull appeared normal, so presuming this isn't anything to worry about... if it had been something serious like hydracephalus they would have spotted it by now wouldn't they?

I've been very good on my low GI diabetic diet and am injecting 3 times daily; am aware that I might have a bigger baby in general even so, cos of diabetes.

oh, isn't worrying about absolutely everything a major pain in the bum!!

thanks everyone

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brightonbleach · 06/08/2009 18:38

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ZippysMum · 06/08/2009 20:16

Hi brighton,
It's the ratio of head to tummy that is the clincher - with diabetes they would be worried if the tum was on a much bigger centile than the head. If they are in proportion, it usually is fine. I am sure they would have let you know if there was anything to worry about.
FWIW My twins were on 90th centile for tummy and head at 20 and 24 weeks - they have slowed down a bit now, though. I was pleased because being big gives them a better chance if they are a bit early (which twins often are). Also, remember the measurements can be a bit 'out' (especially if the sonographer is in a bit of a rush).
Anyway, sorry to ramble! In summary; try not to worry .

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MrsHappy · 06/08/2009 21:29

To help you get this into perspective, 80th centile means that 19 babies in a hundred will be bigger than yours. That's a whole lot of babies!

The differences in measurements are pretty small at this stage (and ultrasounds are not exactly precise when it comes to taking them). My baby's measurements at 28 weeks were not that different to yours (HC - 260mm, AC- 241mm) and she is only 52nd centile.

Try not to worry, it sounds (although I am not an expert in this stuff) like he is a perfectly normal healthy baby to me.

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brightonbleach · 06/08/2009 22:21

oh thanks guys, this makes me feel alot happier and normal suppose its natural to worry isn't it - we seem to get alot of info to process at each scan and so on, and alot of possible doom and gloom scenarios because of my auto-immune disorders - but the babe seems perfectly healthy and normal to me, and I'm managing the diabetes as best as humanly possible, so all should be well. if there were no such things as scans I'd probably just find a perfectly normal baby coming out at the end without all this. well... - I won't worry overly about sizing at the next couple of scans then, thanks lots for putting my mind in a better place mrshappy and zippysmum