High nt, normal cvs results & seemingly normal anatomy scan.

[katiecee93]

Hello,
I’m new here so I m sorry if it is a long post or if I’m rambling. I feel like people on here may have more of an idea of what I’m currently going through and I am desperately seeking answers!

At my dating scan (12 weeks) I was told that baby had a high nt fluid of 5.9mm. we had all the blood work done, referred to the fetal medicine unit and told what to expect etc. The bloods came back normal with a low risk for downs and trisomy 13 and 18.
A week later we went to the fetal medicine unit where they scanned again and did the CVS test. We got the first part of the results 2 days later which came back with no abnormalities, then we Waited 4 weeks for the rest of the results, which again came back with no abnormalities. Since the tests came back normal i was referred for a fetal echo, which I am currently waiting for.
I had my 20 week anatomy scan, everything looked fine structurally, though when they measured the Nuchal fold again it measured at 7.8mm, but she said it looked different sizes at different angles. We were seen by a consultant to explain the still increased measurement. He told us that he could have every sonographer there scan me and they would get 3 or 4 different measurements as they’re not 100% accurate. he told me that from getting normal cvs results and everything he could see from the scan, he wouldn’t really see much point in doing another detailed scan and just to keep regularly checking babies growth.
I’m trying to keep positive in the fact that everything seen on my scan was fine, but the upcoming echo is making me so nervous and I have the worst feeling!
I’m just wondering if anyone has been through the same and what the fetal echo results ended up being?
Thanks

Hi we are in a similar situation though had the cardiac echo same day as 20 week anomaly scan (today!)
We had either a cystic hygroma or raised NT (our consultant said at our measurement of 4.7mm the definition is a bit interchangeable) at 12 weeks. Like you CVS was all ok.
Our scans and appointments went fine today and the consultant said although we have a slightly increased risk of a problem we are now likely to have a healthy baby. I asked about the NT measurement as they did measure this but was told it was less significant to measure at 20 weeks. Ours was approximately the same, don't know if that's why they didn't go into too much detail.

So I'm afraid I'm not really sure what it means, we had so many questions today. But I want to reassure you that you are not alone, I hope someone else will be on here with a similar experience too. I find reading others stories really comforting though appreciate everyone copes in their own way. Obviously we are not out the woods and have to have regular growth scans. I got the impression that once cardiac and chromosomal abnormalities are excluded, the odds are much more in your favour. I was also told major heart problems can sometimes be seen at the anomaly scan so the fact yours was ok is positive. It's an awful wait, I hope you get your appointment and some answers soon x

Thank you for your comment! We had our echo today and she said everything was normal, so like you were just having growth scans to make sure everything is ok.
It’s very comforting reading others stories that are going through the same, as not all doctors seem to have a clue what they’re talking about!
Fingers crossed everything will be fine for us both!

This is us at the moment too. At the 12 week scan baby's NT was 7.9mm but CVS was normal. I've since had two scans and echocardiograms (one at 16 weeks and one at 20 weeks) but the consultant couldn't see problems at either. She said the excess fluid around the neck wasn't present at 20 weeks. I now don't even have any follow up appointments apart from routine antenatal care. It's nice to know of others in the same position. Fingers crossed for healthy pregnancies and babies from here on.

I am in the same position, currently 31 weeks.

At 12 weeks I had an NT of 4.2mm and had the CVS a week later. This thankfully came back normal for all chromosomes and I had two echo heart scans at 15 and 20 weeks that found no abnormalities, 20 week scan was totally normal too with no ‘soft markers’.

Like one pp I’m not even having any additional consultations or growth scans from this point onwards, and bump is measuring the right size. All this is so reassuring, and I have been able to relax more than I thought would be possible a couple of months ago. BUT I do occasionally have pangs of anxiety about the whole thing. It’s interesting to hear from others in the same position.

I am currently waiting the amnio and scans (cvs couldn't be done due to placenta position) after a NT measurement of 4mm and a 1:30 chance for the 3 main trisomies.
We did a private nipt which gave us a low probability of 1 in 10,000 so we have basically ruled these out.

However aside from that I do have a positive story to share from my first pregnancy 5 years ago ....
at the 12 week scan a 3.6mm cystic hygroma was detected, this is so much worse than just the NT measurement and the prognosis is grim. It is the same fluid as the NT only it is septated and views cyst like. We were given a 30% chance all was ok.
Anyway we had the amnio at 15 weeks (the Fluid had resolved itself by then) and all the structural scan and heart echos at 20 weeks and then discharged back to the midwife to carry on as normal.
My daughter is now 4, at school, happy, healthy and no issues at all.

So there can be happy endings

It’s so nice to know we’re not the only ones going through this! I found myself feeling very alone through all this and didn’t have anyone who understood how I felt!
It’s nice to hear all the positives and hopefully can enjoy this time now! Xxx

This thread is very reassuring. I had my scan yesterday at 12+4 and the NT measurement was 4.4. I am waiting for my blood results (expected tomorrow). I am 39. I have a healthy 2 year old daughter. Does anyone know if I am likely to be offered a CVL regardless of blood results, given my age? Before I had my daughter I suffered a traumatic ectopic and I really thought my bad luck with pregnancies was all used up. Feel so stupid now.

Hi Tilly - I think you will be offered the CVS with that NT reading alone as that’s what I had, and I’m 30. My risk actually came back as 1:151 for downs, but they still offered the CVS and the echo fetal heart scan due to the NT of 4.2mm.

Good luck, sending you good thoughts as it’s such a scary time. I also have a healthy 2 year old so was pretty blindsided as it had all been so smooth the first time.

Yes you should be offered the CVS, we were referred the same day as the bloods were taken. they did the fetal echo based on the by measurement too! Hoping everything comes back ok for you x

Thank you both that is really helpful to know. Sending you and your babies love for the rest of your pregnancies xx

Just to update for anyone else in this situation (I've found these threads really helpful). My bloods came back 'normal' so my risk for edwards and patau is 1 in 4200 but for downs remains high at 1 in 49 based on the nt and maternal fold - the bloods didn't make it worse if that makes sense. I've opted to have a cvs this Tuesday.

@Tillyfloss1
Good luck for tomorrow x

Thank you @weivfgotthis I will update the thread. Hope you are doing ok xx

Posting an update for anyone that may be in a similar situation in the future as I've found these threads really helpful. Went for my CVS today at 13+4. They did a detailed scan first at which they said everything at this stage appeared normal. The NT measurement has reduced from 4.4 to 3.8. I assumed this was good but the doctor said it was irrelevant as the measurement taken last week was still indicative of the risk of a problem. She said it was of a uniform appearance and not 'notched' or a cystic hygroma. She marked the face down as 'normal' but when I specifically asked about the presence of a nasal bone she said they don't comment on that as it is just another soft marker and if I'm having the CVS anyway I would know for certain. Wasn't sure what I felt about that response but am trying not to over analyse. As she has recorded the face as normal I'm going to try and park that worry. The procedure itself as many other posters have said is uncomfortable rather than painful. I asked about the miscarriage risk obviously and she said risk of miscarriage exists with pregnancies with increased NT measurements so there is really no way of knowing if you had whether in the next few weeks if it could be attributed to the CVS. She did show me the heartbeat and baby afterwards and said everything at that point was fine. My husband was able to watch the whole thing (I kept my eyes shut). That is probably the other thing to mention, my husband was allowed in for the whole procedure despite covid which was good. We had a bit of a confusing discussion about my blood results because when discussing the fold she produced the same table I had seen following my first scan which showed a 21% chance of chromosomal abnormality. When I was given my blood results this changed to 1 in 4000 for edwards and patau and 1 in 49 for downs. I had previously therefore thought that the bloods hadn't made the result worse but she seemed to suggest that they either weren't as relevant as the fold measurement or that they weren't as favourable as I had thought. She kept saying well you're having the CVS anyway. As previously there was a real air of pessimism about everything which I found unsettling. Anyway, I should have the results by Friday for downs, edwards and patau and within two weeks for the rest. Sorry for the long post but if this is informative for anyway in a similar situation I hope it helps.

I found my experience with the CVS very similar! We told her that we’d had the blood results and they’d come back normal and she pretty much might aswell have said it was pointless having them.
In the room she asked us if we had thought what we would like to do regarding continuing with the pregnancy, and we said until we had cvs results back there was no decisions to be made. When she then phoned to tell me the first set of results, even though these had come back normal, she still persisted to ask us 3 times if we had thought about continuing with the pregnancy. she almost seemed adamant she knew something was wrong and we shouldn’t continue, if that makes sense. All my results have come back normal and echo was fine. It makes you wonder how many people have listened to them doctors and thought how I did and that drs must know best, and terminated!
Wishing you all the best for your results xx

@katiecee93 thanks for your reply, this is so similar to this morning, not only were they quite dismissive of the blood results but she 'explained' the option of termination several times and her parting words to me were that it was always available if I couldn't cope with the uncertainty of the next two weeks. Like you were I am absolutely trying not to think about this until we get the CVS results. Very odd. I am praying that I will be in the same position as you in the next few weeks. Xxx

And I completely agree with what you say about the potential impact of saying this to women in this position. I didn't understand the logic of her emphasis on it at all.

This is bizarre. We were given a very poor prognosis at our first result, similar to a previous poster cystic hygroma is thought to be more likely associated with problems. But the doctor asked us what we intended to do and why we had made that decision, from then on noone has asked us again.

I think it would play to my anxieties if someone kept asking. I guess they are just trying to be sure you are ok with your decision. Wouldn't personally have helped me though.

Fingers crossed for continued good news. I hated the waiting

@usplusone it has played into my anxieties tbh as you say, makes me feel like there's something I'm not being told. The waiting is the absolute worst, today has already felt like a week. Going to have a good cry and then get an early night (hopefully) xx

@Tillyfloss1 @katiecee93
I had a similar experience regarding the termination chat with my first pregnancy (my perfect 4yo who I've just put to bed) and I can't bear to think of what could have been if we had listened to that first "specialist" midwife at our 12 week scan.

Tbh my experience this time around is not much better and after I relayed the NIPT test results to the fetal medicine unit the midwife on the end of the phone was still talking about termination to me!!!

I'm strong enough and fortunately or unfortunately depending on how you look at it more experienced due to my first pregnancy to not listen to this and move forward each week/test/scan at a time

So sorry you have had this experience too

I definitely think the consultants/ midwives err on the side of caution and negativity just to cover their own backs and not give any false hopes just in case there is something found further down the line.

@Tillyfloss1 hopefully you will get your first set of results sooner than Friday fingers crossed. The waiting is just the worst x

Positive update - hospital have just called me with the first set of cvs results and they are clear. Have never felt relief like it. Now to wait for the second set and the fetal echo at 16 weeks. X

@Tillyfloss1so happy for your good news! I read somewhere when I was searching for answers,
That each bit of positive news is constantly increasing your chances of everything being totally fine! that helped me a lot xx

@katiecee93 thank you and that's a great way of looking at it. I've got a bit of that feeling of excitement back now like when you first find out you're expecting. Positive vibes all round xx

@Tillyfloss1
Wonderful news! Hope you can relax a little
Before the next appt x

Hi ladies, I hope you are all well? I just wanted to say I have found your posts so reassuring. I found out today at my 12 week scan baby has NT of 6.1mm also higher risk as I'm 37. I now have the dreaded wait of a consultant appointment and CVS. My DH is positive but I am not hopeful at all not sure how to feel to be honest. Good luck ladies xx