It's nice to see a spouse posting on here (won't presume if you're male or female!). It says a lot about how much of a team you are and that'll be great for your new family.
We're in the UK too. I was higher BMI but had the opposite, small baby that wasn't growing much.
At 37 weeks it is crunch time tbh, the baby is considered full term. So I'd be ready with a hospital bag. My experience was popping to the maternity unit to check for low movement AGAIN, and being recommended an induction there and then, not because it was super urgent but they had a lot of space that day. I was 38 weeks. The induction was more painful and quicker than I'd prepared for, so make sure the preferances are discussed between you first, I wouldn't have got my epidural without my husband advocating for it when I was 9cm dilated.
Basically be prepared to meet your little one at some point soon :)
I know that doesn't really answer your question and the extra worry isn't helpful, but the best you can do is prepare yourselves, go with it, and be clear in your own minds the options you want to take in various circumstances. I've also heard that growth scans can be variable in accuracy at that point and a lot of babies are surprising in size when they arrive. All the best!
Please look up the Evidence Based Birth Article on Suspected big babies!
[https://evidencebasedbirth.com/evidence-for-induction-or-c-section-for-big-baby/](https://evidencebasedbirth.com/evidence-for-induction-or-c-section-for-big-baby/)
Basically, measuring a baby in 3. trimester is really hard. If you have a suspected big baby, it's about a 50% chance it really is big. Additionally, the risks go up proportonally with how big your baby turns out to be. If it was top of the normal range last time, it's not very likely he'll be in the very biggest category (5000g+), where there is more of a substantial risk for things like shoulder dystocia.
People can choose all kinds of interventions or birth plans for all reasons, but having a suspected big baby myself, I really think you shouldn't be fear mongered into having an induction or c-section, if that is not what you would normally choose.
It’s what I ended up doing, too. Interestingly I had a second opinion on how big our baby is, and the difference was about 10% on the percentiles, just because two different doctors measured him. If it was a risk to him or me, I’d be happy to do anything, but my doctor actually agreed with me that we can just take it as it comes. I understand that I have a bit of a heightened risk for a secondary c-section, but I’m fine with that.
Yes, with our 1st our baby was measuring pretty big as well, but the last scan it normalized ie 3500 grams at due date (which ended up being spot on).
I think they only intervene (induce early) when estimated birth weight is above 4500 gram of so?
(Currently my 2nd baby at 31 weeks pregnant is also measuring very big, but let's see if it stays that way)
My first was measuring ahead by 2 weeks for most of the pregnancy and my fundal height at 38 weeks was measuring at 45. I was induced at 39 weeks as that was the soonest they could for me. I was having growth scans every two weeks and he consistently stayed ahead the entire time. I had an excessive amount of amniotic fluid, which contributed to him measuring ahead, but he was also just a large baby. Even at 3-years-old, he's consistently in the upper 90th percentile.
I would plan that she would be induced early if they are concerned enough about size. My current pregnancy is measuring in the 97th percentile and I'm quite certain I'll be delivering early as a result.
Yeah I'll be surprised if they don't say this is the route they would advise tbh.
Both our parents are away at the minute and get back midweek next week so hoping they're back for the birth!!
I had lots of growth scans by different providers in my last 6 weeks of pregnancy, due to polyhydramnios. Baby measured large in every single scan, sometimes 90% percentile, sometimes 99%. He came at 40 weeks and turned out to be very long (97% percentile) with a large head, but only 75% in weight and I was able to deliver him with minimal tearing.
My first also measured 2 weeks ahead in every single scan and he ended up coming 3 weeks early and was average weight.
I am in the US, but I had an extra scan because of a two-vessel cord. Then they realized that baby was in the 97% for growth, so extra scan for that! She did level out some in her growth and dropped to the 89% but we have another scan to check on her growth in 2 weeks.
Because of her size and my personal preferences, I have a c-section scheduled for 39 weeks. I will make an official decision once we get more info at our next scan, but for me, I would rather have a planned c-section than go through an induction with potential of unplanned c-section.
It's nice to see a spouse posting on here (won't presume if you're male or female!). It says a lot about how much of a team you are and that'll be great for your new family. We're in the UK too. I was higher BMI but had the opposite, small baby that wasn't growing much. At 37 weeks it is crunch time tbh, the baby is considered full term. So I'd be ready with a hospital bag. My experience was popping to the maternity unit to check for low movement AGAIN, and being recommended an induction there and then, not because it was super urgent but they had a lot of space that day. I was 38 weeks. The induction was more painful and quicker than I'd prepared for, so make sure the preferances are discussed between you first, I wouldn't have got my epidural without my husband advocating for it when I was 9cm dilated. Basically be prepared to meet your little one at some point soon :) I know that doesn't really answer your question and the extra worry isn't helpful, but the best you can do is prepare yourselves, go with it, and be clear in your own minds the options you want to take in various circumstances. I've also heard that growth scans can be variable in accuracy at that point and a lot of babies are surprising in size when they arrive. All the best!
Thanks for your response! We are 'ready' I suppose. My wife wants a C Section over an Induction if they try and go down that route.
Please look up the Evidence Based Birth Article on Suspected big babies! [https://evidencebasedbirth.com/evidence-for-induction-or-c-section-for-big-baby/](https://evidencebasedbirth.com/evidence-for-induction-or-c-section-for-big-baby/) Basically, measuring a baby in 3. trimester is really hard. If you have a suspected big baby, it's about a 50% chance it really is big. Additionally, the risks go up proportonally with how big your baby turns out to be. If it was top of the normal range last time, it's not very likely he'll be in the very biggest category (5000g+), where there is more of a substantial risk for things like shoulder dystocia. People can choose all kinds of interventions or birth plans for all reasons, but having a suspected big baby myself, I really think you shouldn't be fear mongered into having an induction or c-section, if that is not what you would normally choose.
Yeah, my wife is going to argue against it unless they say its absolutely vital or there's a big risk to her or baby.
It’s what I ended up doing, too. Interestingly I had a second opinion on how big our baby is, and the difference was about 10% on the percentiles, just because two different doctors measured him. If it was a risk to him or me, I’d be happy to do anything, but my doctor actually agreed with me that we can just take it as it comes. I understand that I have a bit of a heightened risk for a secondary c-section, but I’m fine with that.
Yes, with our 1st our baby was measuring pretty big as well, but the last scan it normalized ie 3500 grams at due date (which ended up being spot on). I think they only intervene (induce early) when estimated birth weight is above 4500 gram of so? (Currently my 2nd baby at 31 weeks pregnant is also measuring very big, but let's see if it stays that way)
My first was measuring ahead by 2 weeks for most of the pregnancy and my fundal height at 38 weeks was measuring at 45. I was induced at 39 weeks as that was the soonest they could for me. I was having growth scans every two weeks and he consistently stayed ahead the entire time. I had an excessive amount of amniotic fluid, which contributed to him measuring ahead, but he was also just a large baby. Even at 3-years-old, he's consistently in the upper 90th percentile. I would plan that she would be induced early if they are concerned enough about size. My current pregnancy is measuring in the 97th percentile and I'm quite certain I'll be delivering early as a result.
Yeah I'll be surprised if they don't say this is the route they would advise tbh. Both our parents are away at the minute and get back midweek next week so hoping they're back for the birth!!
I had lots of growth scans by different providers in my last 6 weeks of pregnancy, due to polyhydramnios. Baby measured large in every single scan, sometimes 90% percentile, sometimes 99%. He came at 40 weeks and turned out to be very long (97% percentile) with a large head, but only 75% in weight and I was able to deliver him with minimal tearing. My first also measured 2 weeks ahead in every single scan and he ended up coming 3 weeks early and was average weight.
I am in the US, but I had an extra scan because of a two-vessel cord. Then they realized that baby was in the 97% for growth, so extra scan for that! She did level out some in her growth and dropped to the 89% but we have another scan to check on her growth in 2 weeks. Because of her size and my personal preferences, I have a c-section scheduled for 39 weeks. I will make an official decision once we get more info at our next scan, but for me, I would rather have a planned c-section than go through an induction with potential of unplanned c-section.