1. How Big Is Your Baby?
Crown-to-rump length of the
growing fetus is 5¼ to 6 inches (13 to 15cm) by this week. Your baby
weighs about 7 ounces (200g). It’s incredible to think your baby will
increase its weight more than 15 times between now and delivery!
2. How Big Are You?
You can feel your uterus about ½ inch (1.3cm) below your bellybutton. Your uterus and your growing baby. A side view really shows the changes in you!
Your total weight gain at this
point should be between 8 and 14 pounds (3.6 and 6.3kg). Only about 7
ounces (200g) is baby. The placenta weighs about 6 ounces (170g); the
amniotic fluid weighs another 11 ounces (320g). The uterus weighs 11
ounces (320g). Your breasts have each increased in weight by about 6½
ounces (180g). The rest of the weight you have gained is due to
increased blood volume and other maternal stores.
3. How Your Baby Is Growing and Developing
Around this time, your baby begins
hearing sounds from you—your beating heart, lungs filling with air,
swishing blood and digesting food. “Hearing” in a fetus is really a
matter of feeling vibrations in the skull that are then transmitted to
baby’s inner ear. Baby “hears” your voice as it vibrates through your
bones. Research shows lower-pitched sounds are heard more clearly in
utero than high-pitched ones.
Eat More Meals Every Day!
Eating frequent, small meals during the
day may provide better nutrition to baby than if you eat three large
meals. Though you’re eating the same amount of calories, there is a
difference. Studies show keeping your blood level of nutrients constant
(by eating frequent, small meals) is better for baby than if you eat a
large meal, then don’t eat again for quite a while. Three larger meals
means nutrient levels rise and fall during the day, which isn’t as good
for the growing baby. Eating small meals frequently can also help ease
or avoid some pregnancy problems.
Hydrocephalus
Hydrocephalus causes enlargement of
baby’s head. Occurring in about 1 in 2000 babies, it is responsible for
about 12% of all severe birth defects. Hydrocephalus is often
associated with spina bifida, meningomyelocele and omphalocele.
Between 15 and 45 ounces of fluid (500 to
1500ml) can accumulate in the skull, but more has been found. Brain
tissue is compressed by all this fluid, which is a major concern.
Ultrasound is the best way to diagnose
the problem. Hydrocephalus can usually be seen on ultrasound by 19
weeks of pregnancy. Occasionally it is found by routine exams and by
“feeling” or measuring your uterus.
In the past, nothing could be done until
after delivery. Today, treatment while the fetus is still in the uterus
can be done in some cases. There are two methods of treating
hydrocephalus inside the uterus. In one method, a needle passes through
the mother’s abdomen into the area of the baby’s brain where fluid is
collecting. Some fluid is removed to relieve pressure on the baby’s
brain. In another method, a small plastic tube is placed into the area
where fluid collects in the baby’s brain. This tube is left in place to
drain fluid continuously.
Comparative size of the uterus at 19 weeks of pregnancy
(fetal age—17 weeks). The uterus can be felt
just under the umbilicus (bellybutton).
Hydrocephalus is a
high-risk problem. These procedures are highly specialized and should
be performed only by someone experienced in the latest techniques. It
requires consultation with a perinatologist specializing in high-risk
pregnancies.
