Most pregnancies follow a predictable rhythm of checkups. Knowing what happens at each one makes the appointments feel less like a queue and more like a plan.
Why the visits are spaced the way they are
Antenatal visits get closer together as the pregnancy goes on, because the things that can change start changing faster. Early on, the checks are mostly about confirming the pregnancy, dating it accurately, and screening for conditions that are easier to manage when found early. Later, the focus shifts to your blood pressure, the baby’s growth, and the baby’s position.
The World Health Organization recommends a minimum of eight antenatal contacts across a pregnancy. In practice many women have more, particularly if a scan or a blood test raises something worth watching.
A typical schedule
First trimester (up to 12 weeks). A first visit to confirm and date the pregnancy, a dating scan, and baseline blood tests including haemoglobin, blood group, blood sugar and screening for infections. This is also when folic acid and iron supplements are usually started.
Second trimester (13 to 27 weeks). Visits roughly every four weeks. The anomaly scan, usually done between 18 and 22 weeks, checks the baby’s development in detail. A glucose test for gestational diabetes is commonly done between 24 and 28 weeks.
Third trimester (28 weeks onwards). Visits every two weeks, then weekly from 36 weeks. Growth scans check the baby’s size and the fluid around them, and your doctor will start discussing how and where you plan to deliver.
What happens at a routine visit
Your weight and blood pressure are recorded, your abdomen is examined to check the baby’s growth and position, and from around 12 weeks the baby’s heartbeat is listened to. Urine is checked for protein and sugar. It is quick — but it is also the moment to raise anything that has been worrying you.
Write your questions down before you come. It is remarkably easy to forget them in the room, and no question is too small to ask.
When not to wait for your next appointment
Come in straight away, at any hour, if you have bleeding, leaking fluid, severe or constant abdominal pain, a severe headache with blurred vision, or if your baby’s movements have reduced noticeably after 28 weeks. These are the symptoms our emergency desk would rather see unnecessarily than miss.
This article is general health information, not medical advice, and it cannot account for your individual circumstances. Please speak to your doctor about your own care. Written by the clinical team at Manisha Maternity & Malhar Surgical Hospital.