Fourth week of pregnancy - how to confirm it and why is it still not visible on ultrasound? What is the size of the follicle at week 4 of pregnancy? Can it be seen by performing a vaginal ultrasound? Where do the bleeding come from in the 4th week of pregnancy?
The fourth week of pregnancy is the time when you can finally do a pregnancy test or ultrasound. Symptoms begin to be felt but may be easy to overlook at first. The 4th week of pregnancy is the time of embryo development - the fetus will develop from it much later.
How to know the 4th week of pregnancy?
Week 4 of pregnancy means 22-28 days (which is almost a full month) from the last menstruation, not the 4th week after conception. This is when your next monthly bleeding should start. Women who have regular menstrual cycles and they will keep a close eye on their body, they will quickly be able to notice that bleeding is delayed. However, with a less regular cycle, it will not be immediately obvious.
For expectant mothers who do not know what to expect, we recommend checking the facts based on medical knowledge first. Consultation of symptoms On the Internet, forums often end in panic when it turns out that some women have completely different experiences. Failure to understand the difference between the fourth week of pregnancy and the fourth week after conception creates additional confusion.
Another problem may be irregular cycles or diagnosed polycystic ovary syndrome in women. In these cases, it is best to follow the information about the actual age of pregnancy provided by the doctor during the ultrasound of the first trimester and the following.
Fourth week of pregnancy - you can't see anything on ultrasound
4th week of pregnancy is the earliest moment when gynecological examination shows any changes that predict pregnancyalthough - if possible - it is better to wait a few more weeks to see the doctor.
On ultrasound in the 4th week of pregnancy you can't see anything about the fetus - actually the embryo - or the changes in the uterus. Therefore, such a test is not always performed then. During the traditional gynecological examination of the vagina and uterus, the doctor may look for the first signs of changes - such as loosening the vagina under the influence of progesterone - which are revealed just from the 4th week of pregnancy.
4th week of pregnancy - follicle size on a vaginal ultrasound
Even if the ultrasound does not show anything at this stage, it does not mean that there is no pregnancy - it is just a bit too early for the examination. In the 4rd week of pregnancy the gestational vesicle can be located thanks to the vaginal ultrasound. In the 4th week, it is less than 1 mm in size, i.e. the size of a poppy seed, so it cannot be seen with the naked eye, but the ultrasound image may already be a confirmation of pregnancy.
If not an ultrasound, then maybe a 4th week pregnancy test?
Since in the 4th week of pregnancy nothing is still visible on an "ordinary" ultrasound, a pregnancy test may be helpful. It is also chosen by women who are not able to visit a gynecologist immediately and cannot perform a vaginal ultrasound in the fourth week of pregnancy.
A pregnancy test, both blood and urine, measures the level beta hCG, i.e. one of the 2 components of the hormone - chorionic gonadotropin, which is produced at the stage of implantation of the fetal egg in the uterus.
Are the tests effective in the 4th week of pregnancy?
- Most of the tests from the pharmacy detects pregnancy in a minimum 10-21 days after conception.
- Self-conducted pregnancy tests are effective in the order of approx. 90-97 percent
- Efficacy information is always on the test packaging.
- The less effective ones may have to be repeated in some time.
- You can also have a blood test from the laboratory in week 4, to find out about your pregnancy as soon as possible and with greater certainty. The level of beta hCG (chorionic gonadotropin) in the blood in normal, physiological single pregnancy should double (or increase by at least 35%) every 48 hours. As for the size of the follicle, at levels of beta hCG above 1000 mIU / mL, it begins to be visible in the uterine cavity.
Embryo (not yet a fetus) at the 4th week of pregnancy
After conception, the gestational vesicle with the fetal egg, which reaches the morula stage by cell division, travels through the fallopian tube towards the uterus. During this journey, the morula transforms into a blastula and then a blastocyst to reach its target and implant in the uterus, approximately 6-12 days after fertilization. From a medical point of view, it is then not a fetus yet, but an embryo (embryo) because the 4th week is usually the beginning of the embryonic period, which is counted from the moment of implantation of the fetal egg in the uterus. The embryo, which is difficult to see even on a vaginal ultrasound scan at week 4, then consists of three layers of cells - in the next stages of pregnancy, they will develop into different organs.
The trophoblast, i.e. the outermost layer of the fetal egg cells, together with the temporal (i.e. the fluffy and overgrown mucosa) of the uterus begin to form bearingwhich, with the help of the umbilical cord, will mediate the exchange of ingredients between mother and child.
4th week of pregnancy - symptoms become felt
In the fourth week, pregnancy has no effect on the shape or size of a woman's belly, but future mothers experience some ailments at this time. The most common symptom in the 4th week of pregnancy is slight fatigue. The breasts can also be more painful than before. Implantation of the embryo in the uterine cavity can cause slight pain in the abdomen or lower abdomen and slight vaginal spotting. Symptoms in the 4th week of pregnancy, as during the entire first month of pregnancy, so they are not yet very distinctive.
What does bleeding in the 4th week of pregnancy mean?
In the 4th week of pregnancy, you may experience spotting - called spotting or implantation bleeding, as it results from the implantation of the embryo in the lining of the womb. This spotting is often reported on the Internet and in virtually every maternity forum, as one of the first pregnancy symptoms that a woman notices. If it takes the form of a light bleeding in the 4th week of pregnancy - the mother should not be alarmed. During embryo implantation, it is easy to damage the uterine mucosa, which may result in spotting from the genital tract. Rather, it cannot be confused with menstruation due to the short duration (several hours), a small amount of blood and its brown color. However, if as a result of stress or other ailments, monthly bleeding was sparse or even symbolic, implantation spotting may resemble them to such an extent that it will be difficult to distinguish them. Occasionally, the 4th week bleeding may make it difficult to determine the gestation age from the date of the last menstrual period.
Consultation:
Ph.D. n. med. prof. IMID Tadeusz Issat - Head of the Obstetrics and Gynecology Clinic at the Institute of Mother and Child;
Maria Krowicka-Wasyl - resident physician in the course of specialization in gynecology and obstetrics, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology at the Institute of Mother and Child.
