He’s Just a Big Baby
So mighty Thor is mighty, indeed. Head & belly and overall size are in the 80th – 90th percentiles (yikes!) Slightly more worrisome is that his femur length is only in the 27th percentile. I specifically asked the U/S doc about this wide variance and he said he wouldn’t be worried until any of the measurements were lower than the 10th percentile. Which is slightly reassuring, but I’m finding myself obsessing a bit about this high-on-some-things/low-on-others measurement anyway.
Thoughts from the Interwebs? I’m about to go consult with Dr. Google.
I think that although ultrasound is a great tool, it is not perfect. Perhaps you have a brainy, child that will start of short in stature?
There were some scans of my boys in which some of the stats didn’t really match up. Some of that was attributed (so they told me) to the position that the boys were in and how well the U/S doc could get a measurement. Some of that was natural variation in the way babies grow. Also, a few millimeters of difference can put you in the 90th or the 40th percentile. And THAT can be so easily influenced by the doc’s measurement. I had two u/s docs measure the kids differently w/in the same visit.
No worries, you just have a super-intelligent rugby player on your hands!
I have no real advice. My baby has always had a huge head and been rather short, if that helps at all.
What astounds me is how the u/s tech and doctor can dismiss this issue in under a minute, and leave us poor patients to stew for hours or days. I hope Dr. Google has at least been reassuring.
If you have a moment, will you send me an e-mail: longdistanceinfertility at gmail. I couldn’t find your e-mail address on your blog.
Really, I wouldn’t worry. I can’t remember much about LG’s measurements in utero but out in the world she’s been all over the map. At one point she had a 90th percentile head on a 25th percentile height and weight. Now she’s about 50th for weight and 75th for height (and they don’t measure big kids’ heads!). And better that he’s *bigger* than too small, eh?
Dr. Google is a quack so don’t get too worried about anything they may say! I understand how you feel about percentiles but u/s are guesstimates- educated ones but still they’re estimates- if the docs aint worried try not to worry too much. (i know, look whose saying ‘dont worry’, lol)
When I had about 5 growth u/s for my daughter last year, she always measured about 4-5 weeks ahead for her head and belly but 2-3 weeks behind for her femur. She is totally good and normal.
As will Thor be, I’m sure.
Try not to worry. Will your OB go over the results with you? I would definitely ask about it at your next appointment. It’s good that the tech wasn’t concerned about it, but I hate when they get all dismissive like that. Blah… I’m sure that Thor is just fine.
I’m sure he’ll be just perfect! The ultrasound results depend on the skill of the tech and the position of the baby. All those measurements are just estimates and you won’t know exactly how big he is until he’s born, so please try not to worry.
obviously, you have never noticed the ratio between Will’s head and femur length. seriously.
i don’t know nothing about nothing but I suspect all is well.
when are you next free? I need a sprogblogger fix and soon!
Mo
Gah…all I can think about is the fact that you will be trying a vaginal delivery…naturally…with a head in that percentile – FYI – my little man was first and he had a bigger head then R…and I think he was in the 70th percentile for head size…I hope I am making you laugh and I hope you are not giving me the finger right now!!!
I, too, had measurements all over the place. I think this is more normal than not. I would see that the head was, say, 32 weeks, and then the arms/legs would say just 29 weeks. I asked about it once and the doctor was dismissive (in a comforting way) — I can’t remember what she said (how’s that for helpful) but she acted like it was totally normal (and at that point I’d had doctors say things WERE worth worrying about so I believed her) so I didn’t worry about it. Baby H is perfectly proportioned (if I do say so myself)!
U/S measurements can be off by a bit (I know… That isnt all that reassuring). Are you guys on the shorter side? That could also account for accurate measurements being so different.
It’s so hard not to worry, but it sounds like things are going great. When I was pregnant with my son, I obsessed over every measurement (and after he was born the percentiles and growth charts)–is his head too big/small? What about his legs? His abdomen? It changed to “is he nursing enough?” “should he nurse longer/shorter on this side?” “why is he so small?” and now that he’s 3, it’s “when was the last time he actually ingested a green vegetable?” “is he growing like he should?” All this to say not to drive yourself crazy with it–you are going to have plenty to worry about (and this is a wonderful thing!); maybe this can just be practice.
The other thing I wanted to say is that clearly you know that medical science has great capabilities. One thing it has not mastered, though, is actually predicting size and weight very accurately in the womb. Depending on the tech/doctor/random stranger performing the scan, you may get vastly different estimates. (This was very disturbing to me.) At best, they’re just estimates, and frequently not terribly good ones. (The morning of his birth, my son’s weight was estimated to be 9 lbs 3 ozs; his birth weight was under 8 lbs.) Much easier said than done, because of course you’re going to wonder(/worry), but it’s definitely not an exact science.
Enjoy the (quickly dwindling) rest of your pregnancy!
Paula