We have already had 5 ultrasounds so we have a lot of pictures of the little guy. Why 5 ultrasounds you may ask? Well, we had 2 at our regular OB and 3 so far at the Maternal Fetal Medicine specialist (or perinatologist). We went to see her for the first time about 18 weeks along and everything looked ok. One measurement was a little "on the border" so we were asked to come back at 26 weeks to check on everything. The measurement was of the renal pelvis which is part of the kidney. If you think about the kidney itself as the branches and leaves of a tree then the renal pelvis is the trunk of the tree. It is actually where the urine is stored before it travels down to the bladder. Well, the measurement of this is important and should be less than 4mm. At the 18 week ultrasound one kidney was right at 4 and the other was under. When we went back at 26 weeks the 4mm kidney was now at 7mm and the "normal" kidney was at 4mm. We went back yesterday and the 7mm kidney is now at 7.4mm and the 4mm kidney is now at 6mm.
What does all this mean? Well, we don't know. It could mean nothing and it's just something particular with our little guy that will go away on it's own before birth or shortly afterwards. It could mean that he has something called reflux where the urine refluxes back up to the renal pelvis from the bladder (much like stomach reflux). It could mean a lot of other things that I'm not supposed to worry about right now.
The doctor is telling us not to worry; that we are just going to keep an eye on it right now. 4mm-10mm is considered a "mild" case so he is falling in that range so far. The plan going forward is to monitor this measurement so we will go back at 34 weeks and then 38 weeks (one week before delivery) to check. He will probably need to be scanned in the hospital after birth to see a better view of this (it is harder to see the full picture through my belly). If he does have reflux we will need to see a pediatric urologist and the baby will need to be on a low does of antibiotics for his first year to prevent infection. Hopefully any kind of surgery will be unnecessary.
We are praying that this is nothing and resolves on its own by birth. Will you please join us in this prayer? Like I said the doctor is telling us not to worry but, seriously, how can I NOT worry. I do have a peace that everything will be ok but still worry given our history.
Other than that one anomaly, the baby is looking great. I have now had two 3D ultrasounds done and can tell you that he is a very handsome boy who looks like his dad. His Dad, by the way, does not want to see the 3D pictures so I will not be posting them for you to see. [sorry!]
Here is a video of the baby moving his mouth (you can also see his heart beating) as well as a few pictures!
Thanks for your prayers!
