Basic Care During First Trimester Of Pregnancy

The entire journey of pregnancy is mainly divided into 3 trimesters namely; the first trimester, the second trimester, and the third trimester. Talking about the first trimester which comprises the first three months of pregnancy is considered very important because during this period the parts of the baby develop, the developing baby is extremely sensitive to the outside environment, and in case one doesn’t want to continue the pregnancy then the termination is very safe before three months.

The care for pregnancy should ideally start 3 months prior to planning to conceive (preconception care).  If this preconception care isn’t taken by an individual and she misses her periods, the first thing to do is take a pregnancy test (home or lab test) and consult a gynecologist if the test is positive. When visiting the gynecologist after a positive pregnancy test, a few things to keep in mind and inform the doctor include:

· Date of your last period or menses to help the gynecologist to measure whether the fetal development is proper as per your last period date.

· Any kind of medications taken prior.

·  Medical history, medical disorder (hypertension, epilepsy), history of an abnormal child in the family, history of abortion, etc to take necessary measures and start with appropriate medications. This information should ideally to discussed with the gynecologist 3 months prior to planning a pregnancy.

A few basic investigations to undergo during the first trimester generally advised by the doctor include CBC (complete blood count), thyroid levels, folic acid, and sonography.

 Sonography is important to carry out during this time in order to confirm your pregnancy, to know whether the pregnancy is in the uterus or outside the uterus (ovary or tube), to see the growth of the child as per gestational age, and check the heartbeat of the fetus.

Another scan to undergo during the first trimester is an NT scan which is done between 11-13 weeks of pregnancy in combination with a blood test called dual marker to investigate any abnormalities in the fetus.