Growth scan ultrasound - 36 weeks measuring small

[fictitiousdinosaur]

@blessedx4 thank you! this is comforting. baby was also moving SO much this morning idk how she would have gotten a good measurement

 

[kjcolt]

@fictitiousdinosaur Literally just dealt with this. My baby fell to 9% at my 36 week scan and while the doctors weren’t SUPER worried, I was scheduled for induction at 38 weeks because I also had a mild cord abnormality. Interestingly I ended up not even needing to be induced - l showed up to my induction and they found I was actually already very much in labor, but I had no clue…I couldn’t feel contractions! Bizarre. Anywho…baby ended up being born at a very normal 6lb 15oz. He is 5 weeks old today and is gaining weight like crazy. He eats like a monster, I can barely keep up!!

 

[fictitiousdinosaur]

@kjcolt thank you for sharing!! this is making me feel better. did you do anything to increase his weight between 36 and 38?

 

[kjcolt]

@fictitiousdinosaur My doctor told me to cut back on stress so I started to dial it WAY back at work. And even though she explicitly told me I didn’t have to change anything around exercise, I decided to cut back there too since I was still working out A LOT. I reduced the # of days as well as the intensity of my workouts. I also loaded up on veggies, fruit, and good fats. However, I have to caveat that there’s no way to know if my baby gained weight because of these changes OR if the ultrasound measurement was just off to begin with.

 

[fictitiousdinosaur]

@kjcolt thank you!

 

[mightyfortress]

@fictitiousdinosaur Yup. That was my baby who was measuring small. I had to get ultrasound every six weeks because I have a medical condition and the baby is small. I gave a birth on 38+5 and thought the baby would be in NICU. Nope. She was a bit over 6lbs and she is healthy and happy! Im not a doctor so I don’t know much, but want to share my own experience. Good luck!

 

[fictitiousdinosaur]

@mightyfortress thank you for sharing!

 

[olutayo]

@fictitiousdinosaur My first kid was IUGR (intrauterine growth restriction). He measured 25% at the anatomy scan, just below 10% at 28 weeks, and < 1% at birth. He was born at 37.5 weeks at 3 lb 13 oz. He stayed in the NICU 10 days but no real issues. He’ll be 3 in June and is now about 10% for height and 5% for weight. Our marriage counselor asked my husband (since he worries about it) so what if you have a small child? Does that change anything? The answer is obviously no. People are successful in the world in all different sizes. That being said a 5-6 lb baby is very common. Worst case is they might spend a few days in the NICU if they can’t regulate blood sugar or body heat, but those are very normal things and even big babies have those issues sometimes.

 

[im911]

@fictitiousdinosaur The scans are really inaccurate. And some people just make smaller babies. My friend has 3 kids, all healthy, all born 5ish lbs at term. Also distributions are based on samples. There are just as many babies in the 90+ percentile.you wouldn't be worried about baby them. If everything in your Prenatal tests and 20 week scan looked good, I wouldn't worry.

 

[fictitiousdinosaur]

@im911 thank you!!

 

[prodigalredeemed]

@fictitiousdinosaur For every 88th percentile baby there has to be a 12th percentile baby. That's how growth curves work! Just as normal and healthy as an 88% baby, just maybe easier to give birth to.

I see that you're also concerned about the wide range in the measurements. My kid is estimated to have a 99th percentile head right now and like 27th for abdomen. But remember... The differences in opposite spectrums on baby measurements are like maybe an inch of length or a cm in circumference or 3 pounds.

They're such small differences compared to an adult man being like in the 90th height percentile but having a 10th percentile femur. Now that would be a bizarre looking proportion!

 

[fictitiousdinosaur]

@prodigalredeemed met with OB today and she was not concerned about the wide range of measurements at all since they are really just cm differences (like you said!). but calming to hear it from her. she also said that since the belly is big baby is likely not growth restricted and is just constitutionally small

 

[prodigalredeemed]

@fictitiousdinosaur Glad you got the reassurance you needed.

 

[cathylovesangels]

@fictitiousdinosaur My daughter also started measuring small, I believe she was in the 9-12th percentile for a while plus I had polyhydramnios. We were in for twice weekly stress tests (which she always passed) and ultrasounds. She was born after a failed induction via c-section and was perfectly healthy. She stayed on the small side for a few months and by around 3 months, she was over the 25th percentile. She just turned 3 and is measuring perfectly.

 

[fictitiousdinosaur]

@cathylovesangels thank you for sharing! I have to do the tests now too - bleh

 

[cathylovesangels]

@fictitiousdinosaur Honestly, doing the tests gave me a lot of comfort. And I got to see her often.

 

[hulk1234]

@fictitiousdinosaur I measured small with my first kid, and he ended up being 6lb 6oz at full-term. He’s a perfectly average sized five year old now, and thriving!

 

[fictitiousdinosaur]

@hulk1234 thank you for sharing!! do you think the big abdominal circumference / small femur etc is cause for concern? im just hoping the ultrasound is wrong...

 

[cheezemang]

@fictitiousdinosaur They told me my baby was very small and she was 8lbs. I’m a small woman, this was a huge baby for me!

 

[fictitiousdinosaur]

@cheezemang this makes me feel better! what was your timeline for them telling you baby was small and how small?