Deeply disturbed at news!

[LookingForwardToMarch]

Hi there, Im new to the forums :) Im currently 6 months pregnant and very excited about it! However a last year I had a MMC at 11 weeks and had a D/C shortly afterwards. Ive just seen on 'The Wright Stuff' this morning a report by NICE says that hospitals should NOT do any d/c's before 13 weeks as it is not reliable if the scanner says they can't see a heartbeat because they are too tiny and that some babies are infact still alive. I'm absolutely horrified and so upset. Now can't stop thinking about it. What if they were wrong? What if I'd just waited for things to happen naturally. Is anyone else thinking this?

i have no idea, but i had my scan last week at 11 weeks and the heart beating was completely obviouse even to my untrained eye.....

sorry to hear of your loss xxx

Same thing happened to mea couple of years ago and I had heard of this but they could also see with mine it had stopped growing at8 wks and I knew it should. Have been around 12 wks in size as was sure of my dates and I'd felt symptoms disappear aswel around that time. If they weren't sure they wouldn't do it but if I'd had any doubts I wouldn't have let them anyway and I wouldn't want to wait for a possible few weeks to happen naturally although I only had the medication option and that worked in two days x

I would stop watching The Wright Stuff.

Heartbeat is only one of a number of factors the doctor looks for. Don't torture yourself, please.

Sorry for ur loss,im 37wks after a mmc at 13wks in feb. This time had private scan at 6.4 and hb was v clear xx congrats on ur pregnancy x

I have had early scans at 6w with all 3 of my pregnancies and each time the heart beat has been very obvious, despite the embryo only being 2mm long!
If you have a scan and the baby is smaller than expected, or has no hb and should have a hb by that stage of growth, then you would be offered a second scan a week later. If there is no further growth and still no hb, then he baby has passed I'm afraid. Normally if there is any uncertainty over dates, growth or hb you would be offered repeat scans to be absolutely 100% sure that the pregnancy is not progressing before being offered treatment.
So sorry for your loss

I had an early scan at 7 weeks with my DD and the heartbeat was the only thing you could really make out. It was so clear!

I'm sure the Drs/Mws would've sent you for another scan if they were even a tiny bit uncertain.

I've never been through a miscarriage, but have seen my sister lose babies. It is always hard, but it is never your fault. You have a beautiful life growing inside of you now and you will be an amazing Mummy :)

I had a missed miscarriage discovered at 13 weeks but the baby had died at 8 weeks. At this stage it is obvious. A baby who is alive will move around. It will have blood flowing from placenta to baby. It will have a heartbeat. The sonographer will check for all these things and if there is a tiny bit of doubt they will rescan in a week or 2. Also I don't know if this is co-incidence but all my babies who were alive were lying at the bottom of the sac. The one who had died at 8 weeks had floated to the top and was lying curled up next to the placenta. Even in the scan photo where they all look like an alien at this age it is obvious he was different to the living ones.

In the UK it is law to have 2 scans at least a week apart - even if it's obvious after the first scan that the pregnancy isn't viable. I think this only really happens in other countries such as the US where it's possible to have a scan followed by a D&C in a matter of hours.

Lack of heartbeat is only 1 factor, the size is another, whether it's moving another etc etc.

Not true, mumstevie. They do two scans if there's doubt - usually very early on, up to the 6-week mark, when some babies have visible hbs and some don't. Later mmcs don't need two scans. I had a mmc AF 14 weeks - the baby measured 8 weeks and had no hb. It was very obvious it had died. Op, please be reassured that you did have a mmc and there was no chance of it bring a viable pregnancy. Focus on the baby inside you now.