40 week growth scan

[Stargazer87]

Has anyone had one at 40 weeks? What did you baby weigh? I'm due one tomorrow.

Are 40 week scans not common? Starting to worry now!

Hi OP! What is the reason for you to be offered a growth scan at 40 weeks? Is it your first extra scan (not including the 12 and 20 wks scans)? I've been having extra growth scans because of my age (I'm 43). I think my last one will be at 36 weeks unless something comes up that they'd like to continue monitoring.

I've had one at 36 and now 40 for slow/static growth...

I had one at 40+ 3 as the measurement the midwife did with the tape measure hadn’t changed from 38 weeks

It’s really hard to get an accurate measurement with the baby’s head so deep in your pelvis. I was told the baby weighed 8lb 11oz, with put her roughly on the 80th centile but consistent with my previous scans! I cried knowing that I potentially had another 10 days left of growing, baby’s are said to put of half a pound a week at term so she should have weighed 9lb+.

She was born a whole week later and weighed 7lb, only 5oz more than my 36 week scan! It couldn’t have been more inaccurate for me, so take it with a big pinch of salt I’d say!

They like to keep an eye on things towards the end, especially if growth has slowed down, because the placenta can start functioning less efficiently. They'll probably use this scan to determine if they think it's OK to let you wait for baby to arrive in their own time or if an earlier induction is recommended. They can usually give you an estimate, if you ask, of what your baby is likely to weigh if they continue on the same growth pattern as they are currently. I have had late growth scans withy previous babies, for various reasons. My particular babies were pretty big... ..9 and 10 lbs, but everyone will have very different experiences, depending on the reasons for the extra scan. Don't be worried! The extra monitoring is good news as it enables decisions to be made about the birth date etc.

P.S. As a PP said, estimates aren't always accurate though!

I had a 40 week scan and baby was spot on what they said when I went into labour 2 days later