Hello! Welcome to my office. At this time in your pregnancy, you're probably seeing your provider about every 4 weeks. After you reach around 30 weeks into your pregnancy, you may be coming in more often. At each visit, your urine will be analyzed for protein, ketones, and glucose; your blood pressure and weight will be checked; your provider will check to see how much your uterus has grown; and your baby's heart rate will be determined. We're going to talk a bit more about each of these in just a moment.

One of the key tests that we'll do at this point in your pregnancy is called a "urine dipstick". Although it sounds like you’re having your car’s oil checked, this test can tell us a lot about how you're doing. Checking your urine helps to rule out bladder infections and to make sure that you're not developing gestational diabetes or preeclampsia, which is also called toxemia.

Your urine will also tell your provider if you are dehydrated. If so, she'll have you drink even more water, or help you get rehydrated with an IV.

Your provider will also listen to your baby's heartbeat. Depending on the type of equipment that your provider uses, you may be able to hear the heart beat at the same time. Not only is this fun and exciting, it also helps your provider make sure your baby is healthy and growing properly.

The amount that your uterus has grown will be checked at each visit. Your uterus grows from the size of a pear to the size of a basketball while you're pregnant. By the end of the first trimester, your provider can feel your uterus just above your pubic bone by doing a pelvic exam. By twenty weeks into your pregnancy, your uterus typically reaches your belly button. After that, it should grow about 1 centimeter every week. During the second half of pregnancy, your provider will generally stretch a tape measure over your stomach to check how much your uterus has grown.

Many pregnant women have an ultrasound when they are 16 to 20 weeks pregnant. An ultrasound uses sound waves that bounce off of your baby, and makes a picture based on those waves. This test is safe for both you and the baby, and it helps your provider to check the health and development of your baby.

It's also your first chance to "see" your baby. Although the picture is not clear like a photograph, you can usually see your baby's head, body, arms and legs, and her beating heart! Sometimes you can even see things like little hands, feet and eyes. Of course, your provider will probably have to point these out to you, since they're usually pretty blurred.

A Serum Screen, sometimes called a Triple Screen blood test may be offered to you between 15 and 20 weeks of pregnancy, regardless of your age or pregnancy risk. A tube of your blood is drawn and three values are measured: AFP, maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein; HCG, human chorionic gonadotropin or pregnancy hormone; and unconjugated estriol. Your risk of carrying a baby with a neural tube or abdominal wall defect, Down syndrome, or Trisomy 18 is estimated from these levels in conjunction with your age. This is not a firm diagnosis, but does let your provider know that you may need further testing. It’s important to keep in mind that a questionable Triple Screen result does not necessarily indicate a problem with your baby.