Pregnancy & Baby 

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How accurate is ultrasound (age, gender)?

At 16 weeks, and even earlier nowadays, ultrasound is pretty accurate with dating, although it does depend on the equipment and the technician. At the age you mention, I would suspect that the gestational age stated is certainly accurate within a few days to a week. As a general rule, it is not the policy to inform parents of the baby’s gender as a matter of course. Parents who are really both decided and certain of their decision, that they would like to learn if they have a boy or a girl, can request the technician to let them know. If the technician has identified male genitalia, it is very accurate as to the sex determination. He or she must have obtained a very clear image; they will rarely commit themselves if they are unsure. Sex determination can be done earlier with ultrasound, but the accuracy diminishes. Of course, an earlier amniocentesis or other genetic test could have determined the sex earlier, too, with much more certainty.

Many women can often have no symptoms in early pregnancy. Most of course, would have their suspicions of a pregnancy if they missed a period and normally have a regular menstrual cycle. So it could be that she was pregnant even though she did not feel pregnant. In other cases, an early pregnancy can be present and there can still be regular menstrual losses (there is still uterine lining which can shed in the early weeks). This feature can add to the confusion over “dates”. Make sure that you know the difference between gestational age and menstrual age. Ultrasounds generally use gestational age or age from conception, whereas you may have heard your provider speak in terms of menstrual age or age from last menses.

I hope all goes well for you.

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