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low estimated fetal weight

Hi all
Yesterday i had my 3rd growth scan and the consultant said to me that the babys estimated fetal weight is now a cause for concern, its 4lb 1oz and im 35 + 4. also his abdominal circumference and femur length are well below average!
i have another scan booked for 2 weeks as they said they now need to keep a close eye on me!! and that all my maternity care will now be dealt with through them!!
i am so worried now but am i worrying to much???
what will happen if he stays small??
has anyone else been in the same situation??

tina
35 + 4

Replies

  • my best friend had her baby 2 weeks ago and from 28 weeks they were concerned with the babies size and she had 2 growth scans because of this, they had predicted her birth weight as approx 5lb but she was born 3 days late weighing 6lb14oz which is petite but not too small, try not to worry and hopefully your little man will have a little growth spurt before he decides to make an appearance,
    Good luck for the last 4 weeks x
  • Hi they told me dd was going to be under 6lb & might have to have a night in special care she was born a healthy 7lbs 8 like others have said scans are rubbish for guessing weights try not to worry to much & good luck xo
  • heya hun
    my dd stopped growing at 35 weeks. She was born at 38+3 weighing 5lbs 3oz. Because she was small they had to keep a close eye on her and monitor her blood sugar levels but she was fine and perfectly healthy. Just make sure you have lots of tiny baby clothes ready lol cos even they drowned my dd!!
    xx
  • I agree with Sugar puff, I was never offered any other scans other than 12weeks and 20weeks as I measured fine and at all my midwife appointments they said it looked like quite a large baby!!

    I went 5 days over and baby weighed 5lb 7oz and after i'd had him they asked me if i'd got my dates wrong and could I be early!!!! No I didn't get my bloody dates wrong!!!
  • hey
    I went through the same thing. From my 22 week scan they saw my baby was not growing very well. It's called IGUR.
    At 35 weeks they had to take him out as he;d stopped growing. They estimated he would be 4lbs but he was actually 3lb 8oz. he was completely fine, needed no oxygen and scored 9 on the AGPAR. But he did need to go to special care unit as so little. Stayed there for 5 days as needed to be fed down a tube as stomach so little.

    Try not to worry too much. They will keep a close eye on you. You've got to 35 weeks now. Just means he may be a little one!
  • At least they're aware that LO might be on the small side and are monitoring you. My bump was v.small yet MW estimated that LO would be 8lb at full term. He was born 2 weeks early and weighed 5lb 9oz (somehow I doubt he would have put on 3lb during 2 weeks!) All the midwives kept asking me during labour was "did you have extra scans for baby's growth? He looks tiny!" - Thanks! lol.
    Try not to worry, at least they are keeping a close eye on you and LO. Good luck x
  • Hi there

    My daughter was noted as being very small from 20 weeks onwards. In the end we had several growth scans between then and 34 weeks. Her AC and FL were always the smallest measurements. After several scans they decided that she was probably 'just small' but healthy. And turns out she was! She did arrive a month early too (so a bit of a double whammy) but weighed in at 4lb 11oz at birth and was perfectly fine. She only spent 24 hours in an incubator and we came home after 3 days in hospital.

    But I understand how worried you are - hubby and I worried SO much about whether she had a growth problem or not. But I just wanted you to know that sometimes that's just the way they are and it's nothing to do with having a problem :\)

    She is still VERY small - only around 11lb at 5months and is right on the bottom of the scale for both length and weight but she's healthy and growing so that's all that matters :\)

    Good luck.

    Love NN and Olyvia xxx
  • Hi - just another "scans are rubbish" story - I was told my baby was going to be small and he was 8lb4oz!! All they are doing is making educated guesses based on things they can measure like femur length.

    Try not to worry. Even if the scans are correct you are in good hands and to be forewarned is to be forearmed.

    Good luck with your labour/birth!

    C image
  • And another one from me...

    Adam was estimated to weigh about 5lbs but was born weighing 9lb!!

    xx
  • hi im sure all will be fine its good they atre aware that your lo may be small. i say aware as i was told lizzie would be 7lb at term, she was born a week early at 8lb 9oz! so im sure she would have been 9lb if i got to 40 weeks and 2lb is a big difference to a babies size!
  • My friend just had the opposite problem her scans predicted a birth weight of about 9lb10oz and so when she got to two weeks over and was induced she was understandably bricking it. Her lo was born at 8 1/2lb these things can be way out.
  • another scan story - Isobel was estimated to be an average weight of 5lbs7oz at a 34 week growth scan and was born at 39+3 a diddy 5lb15oz (should've been at least 7lb8oz) but has been gaining weight like a trooper!
  • I don't know why they bother with size estimates based on scans. I was scanned a week before DS was born and was told he was 8-8.5lb. He was 10lb 12oz. Go figure.
  • Ignore it!!!! Everything the medical professionals told me would happen didn't and all it did do was blight my entire pregnancy with unfounded worries. They can't accurately measure size by scan. I say follow your instincts, if you have a hunch there might be a problem follow that hunch, if you feel sure it's a load of hot air make sure you really need any intervention they suggest. Could bet next years salary it's a normal sized little baby.... Go out and buy some cute little clothes.
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