Brown spotting but can hear heartbeat on Doppler? 13 weeks

[N1982]

Should I still be concerned? I have had brown blood when wiping mostly in the morning last couple days. I can still hear baby's heartbeat on Doppler. Scan is Wednesday. Thanks

Brown blood is old blood so everything should be fine. However, any bleeding should be reported to your midwife. I would give them a ring if I were you just to settle your mind. They may even bring you in for a scan today/tomorrow.

Talk to your midwife. It is a bad idea to rely on home dopplers as they can be deceiving and give you a false sense of nothing being wrong.

Do not ever, ever, ever rely on a home Doppler to make a decision about whether to speak to your midwife.

If you feel that there is enough bleeding to be a concern, call her. I hope everything is ok. I know bleeding can be worrying, but old brown blood is often nothing.

At later stages, where intervention like early delivery can truly save the lives of babies, relying on a Doppler is particularly dangerous. I hope that everything is totally fine, but for the rest of your pregnancy see it as a bit of fun only, never anything more

I would phone your midwife or EPU for advice as soon as you can

As I understand it, midwives are generally not fans of home dopplers. It can be very easy to pick up your own heartbeat instead of the baby's and that can lead to false reassurance and a delay seeking medical advice.

Having said that, a little bit of brown spotting doesn't sound too alarming but you do need to have it checked out.

I had brown blood from 5 weeks to 26 weeks. Terrifying, but completely benign. Please don't rely on the Doppler though - 13 weeks is still very very early to be picking up a heartbeat (I remember the mw telling me at 16 weeks that it might still be too early for her to find it).

Brown blood is old blood so hopefully nothing wrong but do contact early pregnancy unit.

As others have said home Doppler's should never ever be used to reassure yourself. You are not medically trained to use one. You may not even be picking up the fetal heartbeat but could very easily be picking up plancental blood flow, this is no indication that baby is OK. Also you wouldn't know if the heart beat was right and wouldn't pick up on small irregularities. Please look at Count the Kicks information on them (they are a very well respected organisation)
www.countthekicks.org.uk/mums/your-babys-movements/why-shouldnt-i-use-a-home-doppler/