What You Need to Know About Your Second Trimester Ultrasound
When you are pregnant, your medical practitioner will order a detailed ultrasound (sonogram) typically at 20 weeks, but they can be done anytime between 18 weeks and 22 weeks. The second-trimester ultrasound is a comprehensive anatomy assessment to be sure everything is growing and developing as it should with your baby.
Your baby’s heart will be looked at to detect potential heart defects during this ultrasound. To ensure heart defects are seen at your second-trimester ultrasound, it’s important that:
- You receive a high-quality screening
- Ask the person performing the ultrasound if they have a clear visualization of all four heart chambers and the great arteries, also referred to as the outflow tracts
Heart defects can be missed without a clear look at all of these structures.