Miscellaneous things to remember
Before you get any imaging done, X-rays, CT Scan, MRI... please let the radiologist know that you may be pregnant. High doses of radiation is not good for your child, but many times if the imaging is necessary, a lead shield can be put on your stomach to protect your baby. The greatest risk to your baby is up until week 8.
Tests you should have done when you are pregnantInitial Prenatal TestsCBC – Complete Blood Count – checks for anemia, thallassemias, folate deficiency, leukemia, platelet-related problems, and infections.
Rubella IgG Antibody – Checks your immune status with Rubella.
HBV – Hepatitis B Virus testing for current and past infections.
Type, Rh, and Antibody Screen – checks the compatibility of your blood with your baby's.
STD – Sexually transmitted diseases (Remember TORCH?). Testing includes cervical cultures for Syphilis and Hepatitis B.
Urine Screening – for diabetes, underlying kidney disease and infections.
TB Screening – PPD or Tine test, this is done only if you are at high risk for Tuberculosis.
HIV Screening – if you are HIV positive, taking Zidovudine can decrease transmission of HIV to your baby from 30% to 8%.
Group B β-Hemolytic Streptococci (GBBS)– 30% of women are colonized by GBBS and the majority of babies delivered to colonized mothers will be culture positive. One in 500 of those babies will have serious infections including infections of the lungs, brain, and blood (pneumonia, meningitis, sepsis). This is fairly easy to treat and prevent with Penicillin.
Mid-Trimester Prenatal TestsMaternal Serum Alpha-Fetoprotein (MS α-FP) – Done at 15-20 weeks, it checks for Neural tube defects, and heart wall defects. An increase could indicate twins, fetal kidney disease, tumors or placental bleeding.
Triple Marker Screen – Checks for Down syndrome, Edward syndrome and other genetic diseases
Third-Trimester Prenatal TestsDiabetic Testing – diabetes can give you macrosomia (big baby)
CBC – Again checking for Anemia and other common blood disorders
Atypical Antibody Screen – Checks blood compatibility, and determines if you need RhoGAM, a medicine used to prevent your body from attacking your baby's blood if they're not compatible.
Other antenatal fetal testingNonstress Test (NST) – Assesses the frequency of fetal movements and checks on your baby's heart using a fetal heart monitor.
Four-Quadrant Amniotic Fluid Index – evaluates how much amniotic fluid your baby has
Biophysical Profile (BPP) – evaluates your baby's well-being by examining five components and giving a 0-10 score, 8-10 is normal and reassuring, 4-6 is worrisome, and 0-2 is highly predictive of fetal hypoxia, or lack of oxygen going to the baby. The five components tested are:
1.Nonstress Test
2.Amniotic Fluid Volume
3.Fetal Body Movements
4.Fetal extremity tone
5.Fetal breathing movements
Contraction Stress Test (CST) – this test is not commonly done because of its expense and and the personnel time required. It evaluates your baby's ability to tolerate the stress of low blood flow put on it during your contractions.
Umbilical Artery Doppler – this test measures the blood flow going to your baby through the umbilical cord. If your baby is suffering from IUGR (Intrauterine growth retardation), this test is useful.
