Expected vs Actual Birth Weights

[homley]

Hi all, just a curious post really.
Wondering what your babies expected birth weights were supposed to be and what they actually weighed when they arrived?

I am currently 39+1 and baby is currently measuring 8lb - will have to let you know if baby is under/spot on or over when s/he arrives - hoping it isn't the latter! :grin:

@jamesbluntssupermodels 😮🙈 that is quite the difference!!

In my wiped out state I asked them if he was actually mine..😂 I was convinced I was having a little wisp of a baby

I did not have a wisp of a baby

Ds was expected to be 8lb 8 he was born at 37 weeks weighing 6lb 4 .

Told DDs growth was restricted and would be 5lbs at most. We bought tiny baby clothes ready for induction at 37 weeks.... she was 7lbs 6 and hulked out of the tiny baby clothes.

The midwife who delivered said the scans are almost always off and she could tell before the induction the baby was a decent size and definitely not tiny!

Told DD2 would be "average weight" (7lbs ish). She was 11 6oz!

Most people aren't saying what method was used to predict the baby's size. The fundal height measurements are famously inaccurate, but growth scans are better.

I was scanned the day I was induced, predicted 10lbs. DD born 2 days later at 9lbs 7oz, within the margin of error for the scan.

My consultant was spot on .. almost to the oz. The sonographer told me that she had never come across anyone who could consistently predict birth weight but that this consultant could.

At 32+3 they said my twins were 4.5 and 5.5lb

Born at 35+1 weighing 3.5 and 4.5lb

I have 3 DCs.
Had growth scans with DCs 2 & 3.....and both were wrong. I was told I was expecting very small babies - worryingly small in DC2’s case.
DC2 was predicted to be very small: 4lb 8oz if born at 40 weeks, according to his growth line of the charts generated from the scan measurements. He was born at 36+0, weighing 6lb 9oz He would have been enormous if I’d have carried to 40 weeks or more!
DC3 was predicted to be small again - 6lb 8oz if born at full term according to charts. She was born on her due date, weighing 7lb 13oz!

Day of dd's birth she was scanned and estimated to be 7 and a half pounds. She was 6lbs 3.5oz (same day).

Expected 9lb.
Actual 9lb 5oz

First DS I was induced at term as he was showing small on the scans...expected to be 5lb he was 6lb 1oz.

Second DS I was midwife led so had no scans past 20 weeks. From feeling my tummy the midwives estimated 7lb. He was 7lb 1oz.

Watching with interest as 32 weeks with what appears to be a giant baby. 5lb 10oz at 31 weeks from growth scans.

DS was measured at 8lbs 5 and came 12 hours later at 8lbs 5.
DD guessed at 7lbs arrived 48 hours later at 7lbs1

Can't remember DD1s but dd2s was so accurate

Estimate 9lb 2oz
Actual 9lb 3oz

Growth scan estimate at 38+4: 8lb 11oz
Actual weight when born at 39+4: 8lb 0.5oz

My little girl was expected to be 8lb 5 and she was in fact 5lb9 born the day b4 due date

I was having growth scans...didn’t actually make it to the last one though as DS made an early appearance due to preeclampsia which likely explains his small size. I’d had to have an extra scan between growth scans too as they were worried he was small. Turns out they were right!

Scan at 38 weeks: “6lb4”
Born at 39 weeks: 5lb11.

Scan at 35+3: 5lb
Born at 35+5: 5lb3

Scan at 37+3 6lb
Born at 37+5 5lb14.

All scans were done by the same foetal medicine consultant who seemed to get better and better at predicting the weights!

Predicted 8lb 2oz, she was born 7lb 14oz at 41+4.

DD estimated at 9lbs was 7lbs 13 Oz at 37 + 4. Only done by the midwife measuring though . I was huge though so I did expect her to be big but it was just me.

@maresedotes 😮

The accuracy of estimated weights on scan is hugely variable - if the sonographer clicks a mm further out than another sonographer on the abdominal diameter, relative to the baby the size difference can be huge once this tiny margin of error is multiplied to make the circumference, then multiplied by the length etc.

There are a few notable exceptions (the odd fetal medicine Consultant who gets it spot on), but I see them mostly out by more than the expected margin for error.

My own experience...community midwife said DD felt small so referred for an ultrasound. Sonographer measured her as being on the 92nd centiles for abdomen and length (they don’t do estimated weight at this hospital until over the 94th centiles). DD was born 2 days later - 9th centile for length and head circumference, 25th for weight. The sonographer was way out, only a tiny bit more and I’d have had an unnecessary induction for “large for dates”.

9lb 5oz and she was 9lb 3oz so they weren't far off in my case

I have heard of some that are way off though. A friend last week was encouraged to go for an elective as her baby was predicted to be 10lb ish...baby was born weighing in at 7lb 4oz

Mine was 1lb lighter than expected