Anomaly scan - can anyone advise on BPD measurement?

[NK5c9065dX1230eaffdff]

hi
20 week scan - biparietal diameter very low (below 3rd percentile), all other measurements normal. No professionals worried and just say baby has very long and narrow head.....dolicocepahly, it seems to be called on the web.....this is quite scarey when you look into it.....
has anyone else had a similar experience?

No, but have seen in ooodles of time. In the absence of any other malformations or out of range measurements this is totally nothing to worry about. Th epeople you saw were right in what they said, if they had the full report in front of them ad saw no other issues of note

...and breathe..

Stop googling

Apologies for typing

thanks! have you really seen it lots of times? It strikes me as very odd....

Lots of times. Honestly. But there is no harm in ringing your consultant secretary, or the antenatal hospital department, for another explanation and further reassurance. You could even ask for a clinic appointment to see a Dr. They are very used to it, as often we don't hear these things the first time. Anxiety and adrenaline etc.

Hello

I had exactly the same thing happen (I think you have seen my thread from about 10 weeks ago). Anyway, all is well. I had a repeat scan at 28 weeks. This baby still has a slightly smallish head but well within normal range and everything looks good.

Everyone I spoke to at the hospital after the odd scan was adament that the baby looked normal even with the funny BPD measurement which was very reassuring. It got to the stage where I considered not going for a repeat scan on the grounds that the most they could conclude from more odd measurements seemed to be that the baby had a small BPD (which may or may not mean a thing and would not have influenced my feelings towards the baby one jot). I did go because I wanted another look at her in the end, though.

So what I am trying to say amid all the waffle is please don't worry. And I agree with TreeDelivery that you must stop googling!

hi you're right.......'googling' is a waste of time, and simply escalates ones anxiety!!!

I was so glad you responded as your 'post' 10 weeks ago seemed to reflect exactly what I had experienced. Thanks, you have helped to reassure me a little.

I still have another scan in 3 weeks.... Did the BPD change when you went for your later scan?

Having already got 2 boys with quite small heads, my rational side says it is little surprise, but even they had BPD measurements well within the average range at 20 week scan!

Yes, with the repeat scan the BDP had increased to within normal limits (although this baby's head measurements are still small). But then I have a small head, so it's hardly surprising.

Two things I would say are:

• apparently at some hospitals they don't even measure BPD anymore as it is not as reliable as the HC measurement for checking growth (babies heads are malleable and this measurement can be "off" depending on how the baby is lying).

• also, at my hospital they told me they wouldn't do a repeat scan inside 8 weeks because they wanted to be sure of giving the measurement a chance to catch up (and even that started to seem a bit pointless to me). So you might get another "worrying" result in 3 weeks. But personally I would take it all with a wee pinch of salt - scans are not the gospel that they are dressed up to be IME, and also I reckon that having lots of scans increases your worry. So what if your baby has a small head? At the end of the day all they will conclude from that alone is that your baby has a small head. The whole thing seems a bit meaningless to me...

Anyway, I am sure it will all work out. If they thought there was a serious issue surely you would have seen the foetal medicine people by now?!