Your doctor has given you the good news and you have learned that you are pregnant. With this news you had longed for, you have realized that the little new member of your family is to join you, which has got you in a sweet rush.
You already need to take some measures and make several changes in your daily life for the baby’s and your own health. Do not forget, however, that health comes first and the person who can help you best is your doctor, which means that this one will not be your last visit to your doctor. That is because you will get the professional advice and help from your doctor during this 9-month period, which is a long, sensitive and usually tiring yet unforgettable process. Then let’s check what the frequency of your doctor visits during pregnancy should be:
- If the period following your first doctor visit is a healthy period, you need to see your doctor once a month until the end of the 8th month of your pregnancy.
- Towards the end of Month 4, your baby’s intrauterine growth is observed and thickness of the nuchal translucency scan is followed up.
- The doctor keeps observing and monitoring the intrauterine growth of the baby from Month 3.5 to 4. If there are any emerging risks, the doctor performs triple test, amniocentesis or AFP procedure.
- Between the Months 4.5 and 5, the second detailed ultrasonography is performed to see if there are any anomalies relating to the birth.
- At your visit in Month 6, the doctor shares the general information about the birth with you and performs an oral glucose tolerance test (OGTT). If needed, a detailed ultrasonography is performed again.
- Month 7 is the month your doctor will perform important health controls. That is because if there is an Rh incompatibility between you and your spouse, this is the right time to take precautions against the health problems that may be caused by this condition. OGTT has been performed until this visit. Complete blood count is performed again and your risk level is reviewed.
- At the last visits between Week 30 and 40, your pregnancy-induced complications are followed up more frequently. In this critical period, your doctor will give you crucially important advice and guide you through the final turns along the way.
- You should see your doctor every 15 days from Month 8 to the end of the Month 9.
- The frequency of these visits, which will be once a week from the end of the Month 9 to the time of birth, will be every three days if the baby has not been born yet by the end of the 40th week.
