Last week I learned a lot in just a few short days, but I was wondering if at some point most of the information would be a repeat of what I have already learned. However, I am continuing to see, hear, and experience new things every day. This morning I got to see an ultrasound for the first time. The patient was 16 weeks, but Irma tried to find the baby's heartbeat for about five minutes without success, so she decided to bring the ultrasound machine in. I was able to see the tiny heart flapping back and forth on the screen. This picture points out what a baby's heart looks like on an ultrasound:
One of my highlights of today was holding a tiny three-week-old baby while the mom went to get on a scale. So cute!
After waiting on call for three days this weekend, "my" mom still hadn't gone into labor! Today she is 41 weeks, and I have heard from Irma that she is going to the hospital tonight! I will probably be up for most of the night at the hospital, but I am very excited! She came in to the office today to get a biophysical profile (BPP), which I got to see for the first time. It was done to make sure that the baby is still healthy being a week overdue. BPPs check for four things: the amound of amniotic fluid, fetal heartrate and breathing, fetal tone (the ability to flex and use muscles), and fetal movement. Nothing looked worrisome in her BPP, but she is getting worried and doubting her body's ability since with her last birth, her water broke but she never started contracting, so she had to get induced. She is afraid that something like that will happen again, especially since she is already a week overdue, so she got her membranes stripped today to realease the prostaglandins and get more regular and frequent contractions.
Get ready for tomorrow's blog post!
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