Please could you help with some questions about scans?

[CouldBeAGreatMum]

Complete newbie here with no knowledge or experience and no-one to ask IRL about all this stuff. For context I am 40.

I am currently 6 + 3 pregnant and have a scan booked in for the 9th January, all being well, which will be 13 weeks. I have seen a few threads about early scans being a good thing (people paying privately). Is this something I should consider? At £90 I could afford it if it is a good idea. Just wondering the reasons for early scan, and if at my age it is sensible?

Secondly, please can anyone shed light on the tests they do for Downs Syndrome? I'm aware it's a heightened risk at 40+. Will I be offered this test and how does it work? Is it invasive? What happens and when should I have this?

Thank you!

Medically there is no benefit in an early scan. It's literally just for you. The 6 week/heartbeat/miscarriage thing isn't caused by the scan and there isn't any difference in miscarriage rate between people who have it or don't - it's just that if you are unlucky enough to have suffered a missed miscarriage, you would find out sooner than if you waited until the 12 week scan. Waiting doesn't make MMC more likely. As there is nothing to be done for a miscarriage before about 20 weeks anyway, there is no difference in outcome.

Congratulations!
I had my first at 41, and am 16 weeks pregnant with our second, now aged 44.
I've only had the NHS screening tests at 12 weeks and have come back as low risk each time.
I have had 2 losses - my first pregnancy ended in mmc and my 3rd was a blighted ovum.
I opted to have private scans because of this at around 10 weeks. Such a relief and hugely reassuring to see a baby in there, with a heartbeat.

As someone who works for the NHS, there is always time to be nice and inclusive and to talk to purple even if it is a word or two.

Sadly you don't always see this.

I had both my dc in my forties. I had the twelve week scan plus the bloodtest which give me a risk factor for Downs, but even though my odds were much higher with dd2 (1- 160) than they had been with dd1, i did not have amniocentesis as I would not have terminated , and I really didn’t want to risk a miscarriage from the procedure. I took advice from my consultant on this.
If you would terminate, and you are given a high risk, (under 1-50 I think ? I can’t quite remember) then at that point you can decide whether you want further testing.
But try not to worry, at forty you don’t have a huge risk.

fonxey That is something completely different and I’m sure you’re right. But you said men shouldn’t feel secondary - well they are in this instance and they need to be able to deal with that. It’s not about them, and IME staff are often making an effort to be discreet about not assuming anything about who is accompanying the woman.

@CouldBeAGreatMum I went to my booking appointment last week - alone. I was there for over an hour and there's definitely no need for DP to be there.

I also had blood test today which I did alone.

He will be coming to 12 week scan in a few weeks though.