Wednesday, August 25, 2010

Pregnancy Date Calculator

The moment a woman finds that she is pregnant, the first thing she wants to know that when the baby is due. There arises the usefulness of a pregnancy date calculator. There are various ways to find out the perfect pregnancy due date. The only point is that in many cases, although a mother follows a particular pregnancy due date calculator, still it is not always the case that the day of the arrival of the baby will be absolutely right. Pregnancy and motherhood happens to be one of the most wonderful experiences of ones life and the pregnancy date calculator indeed act as an effective device to add up charm to the experience.
Pregnancy Date Calculator is based on a "normal" 28-day menstrual cycle. If the menstrual cycle varies; longer or shorter, then consult a gynecologist. Go for regular ante-natal checks in your pregnancy routine. Therefore, the formula to predict the date of birth of a child is based on the first day of your last menstrual period (LMP) as well as the length of menstrual cycle. It is the standard method. It calculates the due date by adding 280 days to day one of your last menstruation period (LMP).

The method works by adding 266-day pregnancy period with 14 days (the time of the first day of menstruation till you would have ovulated). Naegele, a German doctor, came with the formula to take the date of last normal menstrual period and add nine months and seven days (or 280 days). It's a very quick method to know your due date. If you know the first day of your last period and the standard gestation time, then count three months back from your date and add 7 days to this. Many doctors follow this pregnancy calculator.
Basal Body Temperature and Luteinizing Hormone (LH) also calculates the due date. A time relationship between basal body temperature (BBT) shift and the serum luteinizing hormone (LH) surge is the predictor of the occurrence of ovulation, the time of intercourse, and the date of fertilization. If you know the fertilization date, then simply add 266 days to get your due date.
Many times doctors use ultrasounds in order to confirm the accuracy of a pregnancy due date calculator. This is often done because women don't always accurately know when their last period started, or the date of conception. By using an ultrasound, the due date can be confirmed or altered depending on the state of development of the fetus. This can be a more accurate way of determining that due date than a calculator.
Just keep in mind that however your delivery date is determined, it is not likely to be the actual date when the baby arrives. Babies come on their own time, and this actually just gives you a good idea of when to expect the baby. Typically most babies arrive either in the two weeks before or the two weeks after the due date. Those arriving a couple weeks before the delivery date are still considered full term since anything after 37 weeks is considered full term. Once your due date has passed you will have to have frequent doctor visits to monitor the baby and make sure that it is doing well. Usually once a baby is more than two weeks late a doctor will induce since it starts to get riskier after this time.
References:
Sita Gita

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