Regular Office Visits

Follow-up visits are much shorter in duration than your initial visit. The focus of these checkups is to make certain that you have not developed any problems peculiar to your pregnancy. In addition, the growth and development of your baby is monitored. Certain blood tests and other tests (e.g. sonography) are performed at predetermined intervals throughout your pregnancy to monitor your progress. 

We’ll set your due date, if possible, at the first appointment.  It becomes a special “monitoring progress” date for you and us.  Only 1 in 20 babies is delivered exactly on the calculated day, although most are born within 10 days of the expected day. 

We calculate your due date by subtracting 3 months from the first day of your last menstrual period and adding 1 week or by adding 40 weeks to the first day of your last menstrual period. 

A full-term baby usually goes 266 days from conception to birth. You may know exactly when conceived, if so, tell us. At your initial exam, we will try to answer as many questions as possible. 

Frequency of Office Visits

The closer you get to your due date, the more frequently we will need to see you. Through sixth month, we’ll set up an appointment every four weeks. Then, plan to come in every two weeks during the seventh and eighth months, and every week during that last important month. These visits will take less time than your initial exam, but are just as important to make sure your pregnancy is progressing well. 

Discuss your stresses

If you have special problems like single motherhood or are considering adoption alternatives, let’s talk about these issues at your initial appointment. We’ll be happy to help with suggestions and references. The more you tell us, the more we’ll be able to help you… and you should have fewer problems during your pregnancy. 

Just a reminder...Recent advancement in medical research and technology make now the best time in history to bear children. Today, for instance, we know that environmental factors such as cigarette smoking and alcohol consumption during pregnancy can harm the unborn baby. While good prenatal care can significantly decrease harmful risks to you and your baby, there are no guarantees that the pregnancy will proceed normally…

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