How accurate are birth weight predictions?

[Potteryprincess30]

Just that really, mine is predicted as 7 pound 8 (due wednesday) but my last daughter was only 6 and a half pounds. ]

This is just from a scan last week and it does seem these measurements are fairy unpredictable, but how unpredictable?

Are we talking pounds different to reality or fairly close to predicted weight?

@lovewatchingrainfall oh my goodness!

@guessthisisnormal and 6 and a half is absolutely a healthy and fine weight, the same as my first who was born just under a week early.

@Bear2014 that is so much bigger!

@Bigpizzalover it just seems completely impossible for them to give any accuracy doesn't it? anyone who was close to predictions just seem like luck more then anything else

@Loyaultemelie it seems a very experienced and sensible midwife or nurse is probably preferable to a consultant or doctor in lots of situations concerning pregnancy and childbirth

@Loyaultemelie so glad you got the vbac and stuck to your experience and logic actually, in many situations they seem very keen to induce and do c sections then you get other situations where women struggle through labours where they should have definitely had intervention or pain relief a lot earlier ect. There definitely is a lot of inconsistency in care and information

I definitely agree my midwife was fantastic and really supported me, she knew how much I wanted to keep trying for VBAC and I had a really positive experience in the end.

Dead on for me- was told baby would be between 7lb7 and 8lb on delivery at 38+6 (I had an elective section so knew the date) and she was 7lb13.

However, a friend just had a horror of an induction on her due date culminating in an EMCS after 36 hours of contractions because of lack of growth/small baby. He was 8lb8.

DS1 was predicted at 6lbs, maybe 7lbs at a push. I tried to stress to the midwife that he felt bigger, she was having none of it (in a long line of not being interested in my own feelings/concerns). He was 9lb 9 oz. I’m quite small so it was a difficult birth as he was unexpected big baby.

My first I was told would be around 6lb he came 9lb 2 my second I was told 12lb but she was 9lb 10 . So not very accurate sorry.

Bang on with DD. predicted about 9 and a half pounds, born (by EMCS after a long labour and getting a bit stuck) weighing 9lb 6.

This one is measuring similar on u/s so will be interested to see...

My daughter was plotted around the middle centile until 34 weeks where I had to go for a growth scan as the midwife said she was measuring small. The scan put her back in the middle. She was born at 9lb9!! She was 9 days late.

At 38+3 they told me DS was measuring at 7 pound 11 and I had him at 38+6 at 6 pound 13 so not completely accurate

DS was scanned at 38+5 and estimated at 6lbs 15 - he was born at 39+2 weighing 7lbs 9.5

I was measuring on the 90th centile for my whole pregnancy including a scan at 31 weeks where the sonographer commented that I was having a big baby. I was expecting a 9lb baby. DD popped out 2 weeks early at 6lb 7oz (so she would have probably been about 7.5lb at 40 weeks)

DD is now nicely tracking the 9th centile

They significantly underestimated for both DC1 and DC2 and overestimated both DC3 and DC4.

With DC4, they estimated 8lb 12oz at 40 weeks, and she was born at 41+2 weighing 7lb 12oz.

@Littlemissdaredevil it's completely inaccurate isn't it? I can see why they do the growth scans to check your baby for abnormal growth but is it necessary to tell women these 'precise' estimates when most of the time they are pounds out and just create worry about the baby being to 'big' or too 'small'. It would make more sense for them to keep their measurements to themselves and just say 'your baby is growing and measuring fine and is healthy'

@SuperBeagle so a whole pound lighter and a week later . Really doesn't work does it!

In my case not very. DD was predicted to be very small, like around the 5lb mark and they fretted about it constantly. She was 8lb 7 at 39+6.

DS was predicted to be a bit of a whopper as 2nd babies are said to usually be bigger so the midwife said he would be 9-10lb and felt big. He was 7lb 3 at 39+6!

I had scan few days before my induction with no.3, they predicted baby was 7lbs. Baby was 3 days early and was 9lbs 2.

Mine was fairly accurate with dc1. They said ds was 6lb at 34 weeks and would be 8lb at 40 weeks. He was 8lb 13oz at 41+4 so about right. Totally wrong with dc3 though. They said he would be 10lb and I said rubbish and he will be same size as his brother. I was right, he was 8lb 12oz.

In my experience they are accurate to a few pounds either way

Dd1 was predicted to be around 7lb at birth, she was born 10 days early weighing 9lb2oz. My second was 9lb3.5oz at 5 days late, no weight prediction there. With my third I started getting nervous from 40 weeks as I knew baby was big, I hadn't gotten bigger anywhere but my belly and it was stretched so much. I was told baby was likely around the same as my other 2. Out came 10lb8oz ds 12 days late.

Dd2 growth scan at 36 weeks she was 6lbs 10 born at 41+ weighing 7lbs 2.so not accurate at all

Dd1 from feeling baby through abdomen at term+2 they said around 6lbs 7 born 3days later at 6lbs 9

Based just on the 20 week scan and then midwifes measurements, DS was predicted at about 8 1/2 pounds. He was born 8lb 5oz so not far off. Incidentally he was just 10 grams lighter than his daddy's birth weight, which I thought was amazing.

Growth scan at 37+2 said 6lb 13, born at 38+3 weighing 7lb 2oz.