16 week midwife appointment tomorrow - can I ask for a telephone consultation instead?

[TwinkleStars15]

I really don’t want to go to the local surgery if I can help it. I know they’d usually do dip test and blood pressure but I think the risk outweighs the benefit, especially as I’m only 16 weeks. What are other people doing?

I am speculating, but I suspect the main benefit of the 16 week appointment is on a population level from a public health point of view, and it's to give the midwives another chance to see if the smokers have (still) stopped, to encourage women to get their whooping cough jabs, and to deliver that sort of intervention to people who are not clued up about pregnancy. If your tests were all normal at the consultant's last week, I don't see what a urine dipstick and BP test a week later will add at this stage.

I'm still keen to have urine tested at regular intervals. At one of my routine antenatal appts mine has leucocytes+++ in it. I was pretty much asymptomatic of anything at that point. Was sent off and came back as having thrush. Had to wait about a week before I could pick up my prescription and in that time symptoms started to appear. It was excruciating and felt like I was weeing razor blades!!

I did ask mw re effect on baby and she said best to treat as if it's left and becomes severe it can sometimes cause premature contractions over time.

So although my thrush was unlikely to harm the baby, I'm pleased it was picked up and got sorted. So nice to be able to wee without wincing!!!

At my last appt mw detected a low level of ketones in my urine. This was probably down to me not eating properly. I got "told" by the mw (quite rightly!) but again I'm pleased she picked it up.