How does a 12-week-old fetus develop in the womb?

This is an automatically translated article.

The article was professionally consulted by a Doctor of Obstetrics and Gynecology - Vinmec Central Park International General Hospital
12 weeks pregnant is an important milestone, when the pregnant mother is about to enter the first trimester, there are certain changes in the mother and baby's body. You must be very curious to know how 12 weeks pregnant develops? Let's find out in the article below!

1. How does 12 weeks pregnant develop?

At 12 weeks of age, the fetus can weigh nearly 15 grams, about 5.5 cm long. The bones and joints became stronger and the body parts were more mature. This is the time when the baby continues to actively move in the womb.
These nerve cells and synapses develop quickly in a baby's brain.
The fetal heart will beat twice as fast as the mother's and is easily recognized when listening to the fetal heart. Fingers, toes were separated and fingerprints also appeared dim.
Most noticeable at 12 weeks of pregnancy are the reflexes. Your baby's fingers are now able to stretch, toes are curled up, eyes are closed even though his mouth is already able to suck. In fact, if you tap on the mother's belly, you will feel the baby's body move.

The details of the 12-week-old fetus's face are more complete such as the eyes moving closer together and the ears moving back.
The genitals are more complete and can be identified as a boy or a girl, but it is still unclear. Therefore, when the baby is 12 weeks old, ultrasound sex determination cannot be completely accurate.
The intestines are relatively fully developed and food is received through the umbilical cord into the intestinal cavity of the baby. The kidneys have begun to excrete urine.

2. Changes in the mother's body

When the fetus is 12 weeks old, the mother's body has hormonal changes, so the hormones in the pregnant mother's body have begun to stabilize, reducing the symptoms of morning sickness. Therefore, the mother's mood may be more relaxed than before.
The mother's appearance also becomes fuller and the belly may be a little bigger than before.

The private area always shows signs of moisture due to a lot of bad gas. However, this is a normal physiological phenomenon during pregnancy, so the mother does not need to worry too much. Need to clean the body regularly to prevent bacteria from forming that cause mold.
Some people often have a very uncomfortable feeling of heartburn due to gastroesophageal reflux. More specifically, the mother's body has a phenomenon of excreting colostrum to prepare for the drops of milk to provide nutrition for the baby after 6 months.

3. What should mothers do when the fetus is 12 weeks old?

Week 12 is an appropriate time for nuchal translucency ultrasound. Based on a layer of fluid under the skin on the back of the fetal neck, for babies at risk of Down syndrome, the amount of this fluid will be much higher.

If the index after measuring nuchal translucency is abnormal, the mother can do some other tests. Nuchal translucency ultrasound is more accurate if done with a blood test: Measurement of free beta-hCG and a PAPP-A protein The Double test is one of the most common prenatal screening tests available. Relatively high accuracy helps screen for the risk of developing Down, Edward or Patau syndrome. This technique is safe and simple, only a blood sample is taken from the pregnant mother, so it does not affect the health of both mother and baby. Another very important test is a blood test that checks hemoglobin, hematocrit and platelet count. If the hemoglobin or hematocrit is low, the mother has a high risk of anemia, iron deficiency, affecting the development of the fetus. In this case, it is necessary to supplement iron with foods such as eggs, cereal grains, ... In addition, it is also necessary to pay attention to the MCH and MCV indexes to screen for Thalassemia, an anemia disease. Hereditary hemolysis is common in Vietnamese people. The 12th week of pregnancy is called the golden time of pregnancy, helping to accurately diagnose fetal malformations through nuchal translucency index, Double test. This is also the ideal time to help mothers screen for thyroid disease and pre-eclampsia accurately. Therefore, at this milestone, you should go to a health facility for antenatal care and perform the necessary tests and screenings to proactively protect the health of both mother and baby.
To protect the health of the mother and fetus comprehensively, Vinmec provides a full package of maternity services (12-27-36 weeks), in which the 12-week maternity package helps to monitor the health of mother and baby right away. from the beginning of pregnancy, early detection and timely intervention of health problems. In addition to the usual services, the maternity monitoring program from 12 weeks has special services that other maternity packages do not have such as: Double Test or Triple Test to screen for fetal malformations; Quantitative angiogenesis factor test for preeclampsia; thyroid screening test; Rubella test; Testing for parasites transmitted from mother to child seriously affects the baby's brain and physical development after birth. Because it is one of three important test milestones during pregnancy, Vinmec has applied a high-end 4D ultrasound system such as the GE Voluson E10 to help detect more than 95% of abnormalities in this period. Packed with the latest technologies, the GE Voluson E10 enables enhanced image quality and penetration for outstanding high-resolution images and easy operation.
After the results of antenatal check-up and tests are available, doctors will analyze and advise on genetics, nutrition, and a reasonable rest regimen for pregnant women to help mothers and babies have the best health, and develop fetuses. comprehensive development.
If you have a need to use maternity services at Vinmec, please register directly at the website to be served.

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