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Pregnancy

Talk about every stage of pregnancy, from early symptoms to preparing for birth.

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Original poster

Private nuchal in London: foetal medicine centre?

23 replies

caramelgirl · 04/09/2012 19:46

Am pg with #2. Nervous re nuchal scan: am booked in late 13w5d, it's the Royal London which lost my results last time and have heard that the results of the scan are fairly skill dependent.
So... Any recommendations? Is foetal medicine centre on Harley Street the best option?
Thanks!

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boardblonde · 04/09/2012 19:55

My boss had a scan at the FMC and said it was amazing. They do a lot of research there so they really know what they are doing.

AGiraffeOnTheDivingBoard · 04/09/2012 20:12

I had a 18 week scan there as my hospital wouldn't tell you the sex.

My DS thought the music they were playing to accompany the pictures of (unborn) DD was coming from my womb.

Original poster

caramelgirl · 04/09/2012 20:28

Right, expertise AND a musical soundtrack. Sounds like I'm onto a winner. £180 but figure may as well just burn more money in the quest for reassurance!
Thabks both!

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pickledraisins · 04/09/2012 20:31

I had my 12 and 20 week there, they were amazing. In fact the 12 week scan told me everything they usually go through on the NHS 20 week, very reassuring. Well worth the money

WaitingFor12 · 04/09/2012 21:17

I am having my 12 week there tomorrow. Happy to report back!

Original poster

caramelgirl · 04/09/2012 21:35

Hurrah, great to hear a consensus! Very good luck waitingfor12- hope it is all straightforward and they don't find it's triplets or anything!! Yy please do report back if you get a chance.
Thanks pickledraisin too. I definitely want alot of detail and discussion etc. last time some of the sonographers were quite abrupt, poor English and naff bedside manner so left with lots of questions. I get that alot of this is a bit self indulgent on my part but Waaah, I'm finally pregnant

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randomimposter · 04/09/2012 22:16

best £180 I have spent. After 5 mcs and at 44 I wanted more reassurance after my nhs nuchal (even though came back very low risk). FMC was excellent. Thorough, punctual and very reassuring. Couldn't recommend highly enough. They are also very compassionate, when i'd had to cancel a nuchal with less than 24 hours notice after a previous MMC, they were totally lovely on the phone and sent me a follow up email. I don't think you'll find better.

ogredownstairs · 04/09/2012 22:26

I agree. Was fantastic for us post MC (and correctly predicted gender at 12 weeks!) Money well spent for the time they spend with you and on the spot results and consultation.

Secondsop · 05/09/2012 10:42

I haven't been there but had my scan at Kings where they use the same sonographers and they were excellent. I'd also booked an early scan there for a previous pregnancy and when that ended in miscarriage I also found like jollster that they were really lovely on the phone, asking if everything was ok and when I tearfully said "no" the receptionist was so kind. I rang them about possibly getting a second opinion nuchal scan this time round because of my high-risk results from the NHS one and they could have just taken my money but to their credit they said that as I'd already been scanned at kings they wouldn't come up with different results but that I could come in a few weeks time for a nearly anomaly scan but that they wouldn't recalculate the risk till after 20 weeks, so I ended up not going in the end.

minipie · 05/09/2012 10:55

I had a 12 week scan at the FMC the day after my NHS one, as a "second opinion". It was excellent and very detailed, she spent about 1.5 hours with me (partly me taking a walk to get the baby in the right place). I was able to get an appointment pretty last minute as well.

My Downs' risk results were pretty similar from both NHS and FMC. (My NHS scan was at St Georges and FMC said they are excellent there, so it wasn't that I doubted the NHS result iyswim, just wanted more information). However the FMC also gave me my risk results for Edwards and Patau which the NHS didn't do - this turned out to be crucial for me as the Edwards/Patau risk was much higher than the Downs risk and this decided me in favour of having a CVS. Also the FMC looked at far more "soft markers" eg fingers and toes, blood flow to various organs, nasal bone etc which the NHS either didn't do or didn't tell us about.

Best of luck.

Secondsop · 05/09/2012 11:31

That's interesting minipie - kings gave me a risk factor for Edwards/Patau as well as Downs and definitely focused on soft markers as I had one of them (absent nasal bone), but if they hadn't given Edwards/Patau numbers I would definitely have gone to FMC for a second scan.

minipie · 05/09/2012 11:34

Yes, I have heard that others did get an Edwards/Patau risk at their NHS scan. So I wonder if it was an oversight at St George's tbh - I didn't think to ask as I hadn't even heard of Edwards/Patau till I had the FMC scan.

Original poster

caramelgirl · 05/09/2012 13:40

Thank you all! Yes, was interested in soft markers early on as Edwards can be indicated at the 20 week scan cam't it which would be even more heartbreaking.
And very sorry for your losses, really takes the fun out of early pregnancy, doesn't it? Which leaves nausea and sore breasts and nerves, winner.
But was v inspired by your advice and by how lovely they sound and emailed the FMC at 6 this morning, no reply yet...

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Dunnitt · 05/09/2012 15:18

FMC - best money I ever spent. Went there for 12 wk and 18 wk scans. They know their stuff. 45 minute scan as opposed to 10 mins with NHS. Downs test/odds results given immediately. Do It!

Midgetm · 05/09/2012 15:42

Echo all that's been said I called them for a second opinion in something. A doctor called me back within an hour and basically refused to take my money as they wouldn't be able to tell me anything more than my consultant. They could have easily taken my money but instead just really reassured me. They were brilliant and I didn't even go there!

Original poster

caramelgirl · 05/09/2012 16:48

Brilliant!! Thanks again, unanimous praise for any organisation is pretty amazing!
Booking in for 4th October! Just got to stay pregnant now!
Thanks all and hope that you got to see the great Mr N himself waitingfor12

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WaitingFor12 · 05/09/2012 17:19

Hi. Just on my way home from today's appointment. Was really impressed, they spent ages on my scan, checked everything more than once. Very professional, really great experience. Towards the end the dr doing my scan went to get professor N and he came and went over my results with me (all fine thank goodness). He was lovely very charismatic!

I wouldn't hesitate to go there. Only downside they were running about hr and half late, so long wait. But made for interesting people watching :)

Original poster

caramelgirl · 05/09/2012 17:28

Congratulations! How lovely to have that reassurance.
The receptionist warned me that Wednesdays run 90 mins late. Maybe they are all being super careful whilst prof is there so double check everything more than usual. All the better for you tho'!
You off to broadcast your pregnancy to the world/your family now then?!

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WaitingFor12 · 05/09/2012 17:33

Sure am! Will tell work tomorrow and then the world can know!
Excited for my 20 week scan now since 12 weeks was so cool. Oh and they give you loads of photos and a DVD too :)

All the best for yours, hope it goes well!

Secondsop · 05/09/2012 18:27

Congratulations waitingfor12 and fingers crossed caramelgirl!

Original poster

caramelgirl · 05/10/2012 21:09

Had my scan. It was brilliant. They were pretty much on time, really lovely sonographer (Katarina?) took ages going through everything. Asked if we had any more questions. Super reassuring, super friendly. And no one objected to DD hurtling around the minimalist interior and collections of ancient pottery.
£180 which I thought was very fair considering my local not v good private clinic charged £100 for a five minute ultrasound when I was 8 weeks gone.
Definitely going back for my 20 week scan. Think I've also got my NHS 12 week scan tomorrow at Homerton so will be able to tell DD what they have found in there!

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18wksplus · 05/10/2012 21:52

FMC is great. We got a high-ish risk on the NHS blood and nuchal test, so went for a reassurance scan there (since the nuchal measurement was small, it was just my bloods sending the risk high).

They were lovely: nice long scan with lots of time for questions. And not running late for us! Our risk dropped massively: apparently I have 'bad' blood which doesn't indicate a problem with the baby but obviously sends risk levels high when it's one of only two things being considered (rather than all the factors they look at at FMC).

And in relation to the skill of the sonographer - my nuchal measured smaller at the FMC than in the NHS: he checked it three times to be sure. It was still well within healthy limits in the NHS, but made me question their skill in everything I'm afraid...

Wednesdays have longer delays I think because they offer on-the-spot amnios then, so you may be delayed because someone decides to go for the test then and there (think that's why - remember reading that somewhere else I think).

perfectstorm · 06/10/2012 01:04

We went to the FMC and they were indeed great.

I would point out, though, that the Professor running it offers the same service at King's College Hospital in London under the NHS, too. He developed nuchal fold scans and has taught all those doing them, but standards aren't as high sometimes as they are at his clinics, both Kings and FMC. If you are entitled to use King's then you actually get FMC standards for free, though shorter and less detailed scans.

All profits from the FMC go into research to help babies and mothers, too. So you aren't just paying a business, which is also a bonus I think.

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