PREGNANCY Consultations and health checks The appointments with your GP and midwife comprise consultations centred on your own health and wellbeing, and health checks. The consultations are based on the wishes and needs of the individual patient – i.e. you – and generally focus on aspects such as: • Your physical, psychological and social circumstances, including diet, exercise, alcohol, way of life, inances and social network • • Any ailments resulting from your pregnancy • • Your ideas about pregnancy, childbirth, breastfeeding and coping with a newborn baby • • Your plans for the entire process, including expectations for the time immediately following the birth. The health checks comprise blood pressure measurements, as well as examination of your urine to establish protein and sugar levels, and to check for bacteria. The doctor or midwife will also check how the pregnancy is progressing, how the foetus is growing and how it is positioned in your uterus. Hospital check-ups on your unborn baby Early in the pregnancy, all pregnant women are offered examinations designed to establish the condition of the foetus. These comprise: • A risk assessment, consisting of an ultrasound scan of the foetus – known as a ‘nuchal fold scan’ – in week 11–13 of pregnancy. The result of this ultrasound scan is combined with a blood sample – a ‘double test’, as it is known – in week 9–13 of pregnancy. Together, these measures can indicate the risk of the foetus having Downs Syndrome or other chromosome defects. • An ultrasound scan around week 20 of pregnancy, which is used to check for a variety of deformities. You are free to choose whether or not you want these examinations of your unborn baby, and your GP will inform you of your options in this regard during your irst pregnancy examination in week 6–10 of your pregnancy. If you want to ind out more about the examinations before making a decision, your GP will give you a referral to the maternity ward. Other examinations If your GP or midwife considers it necessary during your pregnancy, you may be referred for additional examinations at the hospital – by an OB-GYN, for example. 3
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