Monday, August 25, 2008

The Good, the Bad and the Cute.

Wow. The u/s was over an hour long! The periontologist came in and she asked me if she could practice some new techniques she learned in a class last week. Fine by me! So I did get to see things I never saw before (like a 4d of a beating heart and blood movement through ventricles, etc) but it was all really technical so definitely over my head. But without further ado, the updates:

The Good: Baby is measuring perfectly. All parts intact and in all the right places. Functioning heart, kidneys and bladder. Working mouth, throat, tummy. And he definitely had a penis. Oh, and big feet. I found that funny. So for the anatomy scan, ~all~ was well. Yay!

The Bad: The cord was still definitely velamentous. Quick explanation: The plactenta is shaped like a disc and a perfect cord insertion would be right in the middle. In my case, the cord goes through the bag of waters and attaches about 2cm from the end of the placenta and then transverses (goes in sideways) to the middle of the placenta.

This causes some concerns. The first concern is it could restrict growth due to decreased blood flow. This happens in about 5% of VCI cases. The Dr ordered growth scans every 6 weeks, with my next one at 24 weeks. The second concern is much, much scarier. Due to the cord not being as mobile in the section it transverses the placenta, as the baby gets bigger, the baby can roll over on it and compress it enough to cause the blood flow to stop, literally killing himself, resulting in a stillbirth. This happens in about 1% of cases. The Dr has ordered tests to watch the heartrate twice a week starting at 32 weeks. If they can tell the baby ~is~ actively compressing the cord enough to see it on the test, they'll take the baby early. She said these tests won't take the risk down to zero, as they can't monitor me 24 hours a day and a freak accident can always happen. Ugh. So this is scary. You better believe I'll be listening to the baby via doppler a lot in 3rd tri. Oh, and the cord inserts on the right side, so as I get bigger, no right side sleeping!

The Cute: We got some cute ultrasound pictures. I did get the money shot (even though we already knew he was a boy) and some other profiles, but those are always hard to point out. I don't have a scanner here at work, so these are pictures of pictures. Crappy quality, but you can still see him.


This is my favorite. He's looking straight at us, eyes closed. On the bottom of the picture, a little to the left, you can see his shoulder and his arm and elbow really well, and his hand is nestled up on the right side of picture, covering the left side of his face. You can see his right eye, little nose and lips really really well.


This one is almost the same as the first, but he turned and covered the other side of his face with his hand. Now the left eye is visible and his hand is curled up in front of his face, with the other hand under his chin.


This one ~is~ creepy, but funny enough to post. The entire topf of his face/head gets distorted due to his arms, but he opened his mouth and looks like he's smiling. Heh.

30 comments:

Anonymous said...

I'm glad to hear your baby is doing well and everything is working. I hope the cord insertion doesn't cause problems. It sounds like they are going to watch you closely and take good care of you. What a cutie pie you've got!! Those pics are amazing!

Morgan Owens said...

Congrats on everything being well! I'm sure the cord thing will all turn out well anyways too!! Those pics are like 3D...is that just the "high" technology they have or what? Oh..I found out this morning im having a boy too! YAY!

Lisa said...

Aren't ultrasounds the coolest! I also had a ton of them due to the twins and the fear of twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome. I found that it is best to not focus on the possibilities of negative things that can happen. Something could always go wrong and since there is nothing that can be done to prevent it, why ruin a happy pregnancy?

I am sure all will be great and he will be born a strong, healthy little man (just like his mommy, the strong part that is...!)

Take care!

The Jensens said...

Wow, isn't it amazing what the u/s show nowadays? Congrats, he's lookin' cute!

Agata said...

Those are amazing pictures - I cannot wait to see his smiling face once he's out in the "real world" :) I'm sorry about the worrysome news though - I am sure it's very stressful. But it sounds like they have a good plan in place to monitor you and ensure the baby's well being.

MrsSpock said...

Glad he has all his bits and pieces. The VCI is scary- I don't blame you for feeling worried. Hell, J is nearly 4 months old and I still spend the odd afternoon googling "cord strangulation" and worrying about all the ways it could have gone wrong and wondering why I got so lucky. I have no doubt I'd be whipping out that doppler if I was in your shoes. If someone comes up with a cure for worrying, I'll be the first to sign up.

g said...

TOOOOOO CUTE!!!!!!

gald allwent well considering.. i hope the cord placement turns out to be ok! and al will be well with that.. How fune to have all those pics!
YAH...

Anonymous said...

It looks like he's doing the "peace" sign in the second picture. . . not quite the "rock on" sign but it'll work for now! I can't wait to read about your experiences with a little boy after all your girl experiences. . . those girls will keep him on his toes for sure! Best of luck with the cord thing!

Jen said...

Congrats on an overall good ultrasound. And I'm hoping you have an uneventful rest of your pregnancy. Many hugs!

Jen said...

At least the cord insertion rate of complications are somewhat low, and you'll be getting lots of extra monitoring which will hopefully be reassuring. Definitely a good thing that you'll have that doppler around!

Anonymous said...

I had a few free minutes at work so I wanted to comment because I have been waiting for this post all day.

As for your good, I am so glad everything is anatomically well and functioning...such a relief! As for your bad, I'm sorry you are dealing with such a thing but it sounds like your doc is completely on top of things AND you will be getting great use out of that doppler rental ;-)On a serious note, you know I keep you in my thoughts ((hugs)) for the ongoing stressfulness of it.

As for the cute, yup...pretty darn cute. Do you think he looks like Allie? I think I see a lot of her features in his face right now.

Almost halfway there...yay!!!

Crunchy Green Mom - Suzanne said...

YAY... So cute. It's a boy.. now I have tons of things I can make for you :)

Ok... I didn't want you to come and drink silly... just visit!
But I see what you are saying, I will have one for you, and then have one with you someday!!

You sound happy lately.. I like that :)

Debz said...

AH! that last one is creepy - you scared me a little (lol)

hopefully you will fall into the better percentile and not have any major problems with the cord insertion. looks like he's gonna be a real heartbreaker when he hits the teen years.

oh, and just wait - when they all get older, you may have to re-evaluate too. sometimes the smart ones have absolutely no common sense. but i do love them (darnit!)

MMJ said...

Wow...amazing pictures! Glad to hear he's measuring well. I'm sure you'll keep everyone posted on the cord. I'll be checking back!

Birdee said...

How adorable, He's a doll, and I see where katie says he's looking like Allie, it will be so cute to see who he looks like when he gets here.

Sarah said...

Great pics! Scary about the cord, but I am so glad they will be monitoring you a lot.

LOL, I wasn't naked during the delivery, but at some point (after he came out), they took my gown off and they didn't put a new one on. Then I started nursing right away...I don't remember all the details because all I cared about was that baby! LOL...

Shea said...

Awesome pics and I'm so happy that all is well!

MrsDrink said...

Ok, I'm sorry, I gotta say it....TOLD YA!!! I knew you'd have a boy!! Congrats!

(((HUGS)))

Jamie said...

Your pictures are so amazing!! Technology just astounds me sometimes.

I am sorry about the cord news - I hope you fall into the 99th percentile. Bye-bye left side!

Denise said...

Aww, look at that cute little boy! That last picture cracks me up.

I hope everything goes fine with the cord issue. It just sucks that you can't relax during this pregnancy and be confident that all is well! Not fair!

JW Moxie said...

Holy shizzle, Nancy. I'd much prefer it if you didn't have anything definite to worry about, but thank God there's just a 1% chance of the worst case scenario happening. Still - that 1% would be enough to have me permanently attached to the doppler as I got further along. I'm glad that your OB is being so proactive with monitoring the growth, etc.

Such cute pictures! I love the last one!

jenn said...

fist off- how freaking cute is he??!!! I LOVE the smiling one, but to me it looks like he's shouting! ;o)

I had a nice long chat with him (don't ask how...) I told him to start being nice to momma & stop scaring her with all these percentages of doom... he said he would listen. {{{hugs}}} on the cord- I'm sure it will all be fine, but you're both in my thoughts constantly anyway.

Catie said...

Beautiful pictures! I'll keep your lil boy in my prayers and send lots of growth and safe vibes your way.

Kelly said...

aww...he's adorable!

Sarah said...

Oh yeah, and love the pics! I can't believe the hospital I go to (went to) doesn't have 3D ultrasounds yet. Those are so cool! I was staring at the top picture and this little guy totally has Allie's mouth. The pouty lip is almost identical! That is so cool....

Anonymous said...

those scans are awesome!
Very glad that you are going to be monitored for the cord insertion dealio. phew.
xo

Anonymous said...

Wow! Those pics are super :) What a cutie!!

Sjoe, hope the cord insertion thingi does not cause problems but it sounds like the doc has put good measures in place to try and ensure nothing untoward happens...

Io said...

I'm glad the kid is looking good - I hope the cord thing is ok.
I l.o.v.e. the last picture. That is one cool dude you are carrying.

heavenlytini said...

ahhh he's gonna be a heartbreaker to all the little girls in the playground lol i'll be praying for you concerning the cord issue!!!i believe in my heart your baby is gonna be fine and be born healthy!!!

Carrie Ann said...

Glad to hear your baby's doing well! I'm sure the cord issue will work out because you are being heavily monitored (great you own that doppler!). You are so tiny and cute pregnant! I am HUGE!
-Chipperlibrarian