- If you are bleeding or cramping in early pregnancy.
- To screen for Down syndrome in week 11-13 of pregnancy, as part of routine prenatal testing during the first trimester. This screen is called nuchal translucency screening, which measures the thickness of the fetus’ neck. This test cannot tell you whether the baby has Down syndrome, only the likelihood of whether the baby does.
- To confirm that your pregnancy is not ectopic, or outside the uterus.
- In the case of gestational diabetes or pre-eclampsia, ultrasounds can be used to monitor the growth of a baby.
- Transvaginal ultrasounds can be used later in pregnancy to determine early warning signs that you might go into labor prematurely based on the length of your cervix.
- If you are expecting twins, you will need ultrasounds every two weeks during weeks 16-29 to monitor the growth of the babies and to check whether one of them is hogging a large portion of resources from their shared placenta. This condition is treatable by minimally invasive surgery.
Did you know?
A baby’s heartbeat can be detected in as little as 5 to 6 weeks into pregnancy.