how do they measure your amniotic fluid?

[crazyrunningmama]

Soo, my mw has suggested that I go for a non-stress test. She explained the heartbeat monitoring aspect but she also mentioned that they measure how much amniotic fluid there is. How do they do that? Is it invasive?

thanks!!

[sanguine_speed]

[CorasMama]

I know u/s is notoriously inaccurate for baby size, but is not too bad at estimating fluid.

They divide the uterus into four quadrants, and measure the largest pockets of fluid, and that gives them a general good idea of how much you have. A good level of amniotic fluid can be anywhere between 5 and 25 AFI (amniotic fluid index), but even a little more (MILD polyhydramnios) is not seen as a problem, so you don't need to worry that they'll come up with a 27 and freak out. Mine measures at 27, and my doctor barely mentioned it!

[sanguine_speed]

[Oztok5]

My reply was going to be, "poorly."

But yes, they measure the fluid pockets on the ultrasound images. There are real amniotic fluid issues out there, but I think they're often overblown to talk women into inductions and such.

[laughymama]

Originally Posted by Oztok5

My reply was going to be, "poorly."

But yes, they measure the fluid pockets on the ultrasound images. There are real amniotic fluid issues out there, but I think they're often overblown to talk women into inductions and such.

Yup. This is what happened to me with my first. They doctor got very grave and discussed the 'low fluid' etc. etc. Then put me on bed rest and scheduled an induction date. I was terrified and agreed.

Come to find out later, it was a 6. After the birth my good old doc said, "Well, you were actually on the lower end of normal but it still could have been a conern."

[cameragirl]

I had a scan that showed low fluid, so I was sent to the hospital. They had me drink a few big glasses of water, waited a bit, and scanned again. Both baby and I were fine. Often it is just dehydration and it can be correct pretty easily.

[chambom]

I had about 4-5 non stress tests as I went two weeks overdue with DD.

At the first one they measured the fluid on the low side, maybe a 8-9 I think. For the next tests I made sure I was hydrating really well. It did make a difference and so they couldn't use low fluid as an excuse to induce.

Good luck!