Fetal development in the 7th week of pregnancy

Never again in the child will not occur such a number of changes for a limited amount of time, as now, when there is a first trimester of pregnancy. At 7 obstetric week, the baby changes daily, constantly, every minute.

The processes that take place inside the mother's womb can be compared to magic or miracle. About what the crumb has become by this date, and what awaits it in the next seven days, we will tell in this material.

7 obstetric week corresponds to the full 4 weeks of the baby's life from the moment of conception. Went to the fifth week. Since ovulation in different women occurs at different times, but in most cases in the middle of the cycle, it is more convenient for obstetricians to simplify the task to consider the period from the first day of the last menstrual period. Therefore, a woman may have confusion, because she is used to count the embryonic period.

In fact, all medical examinations, all ultrasound standards and test results are always indicated in obstetric weeks, and therefore now, when just over 4 weeks have passed since conception, and after a delay - only 2 full weeks, it is the seventh week of pregnancy.

At week 7, it is considered that the most critical period in terms of the probability of losing a baby is already left behind. In fact, the threat of termination of pregnancy is still very high, because the crumb is very vulnerable, any adverse factor can affect its development.

While your baby is still considered an embryo. In fact, the transitional neo-fetal period begins, which will last 2 weeks. At the 9th week of pregnancy, the fetal period of fetal development will begin, and then the baby will all be officially called the fetus, not the embryo.

Now the baby is in a transitional stage - it is in fact not an embryo, but also not a fetus. Therefore, it can be called both an embryo and a fetus. Many doctors are inclined to believe that the baby is already worthy of being called a fetus, therefore, in conclusion, ultrasounds at this time already write that the fetus is visualized inside the uterus.

The early embryonic period remained behind, when the crumb was a collection of cells that were divided. Now he has found outlines similar to human ones, and this similarity is increasing more and more with each passing day.

A little more than four weeks passed from the moment of conception, however, the baby has increased from the day of conception by about 10 thousand times! The fetal embryo grows very intensively, and at the very beginning of this week its growth will be approximately half as much as at its end.

In 6-7 obstetric weeks, the growth of the baby is about 2 centimeters. At the end of the week, the growth will increase to 5 centimeters. Weight does not come so fast, the stage at which the child starts to gain grams, has not yet started. In the meantime, the weight of the baby - a little less than a gram, on average - 0.8 gr.

The size of the crumbs can now be compared with the solid size of beans. But it is its size entirely - along with fetal membranes.The mother's womb has already grown one and a half times, and now it is about the size of an orange. The baby "bean" is still very cozy and spacious in it, there is enough space in the uterine cavity.

The body of the baby on this period looks disproportionate. The largest part of his body is his head. It is not even, not round, drop-shaped, but its impressive size is not a whim of nature, but an urgent need.

Now the baby is like a tadpole because its brain grows more intensively than all other organs. At week 7, the brain is already divided into two hemispheres - left and right. The brain substance is formed at a rapid pace.

Each “bubble” will correspond to one of the brain regions. The neural tube is not closed yet, development of the nervous system is very intense.

It is precisely in these seven days, which belong to the seventh obstetric week, that the formation and development of a network of nerve fibers begins. They will soon have to connect the brain and spinal cord with all internal organs.

If the network is formed correctly and accurately, problems with the work of the central nervous system should not arise in a baby, but if negative factors interfere with this process now, severe malformations such as microcephaly (decrease in brain size), hydrocephalus (dropsy of the brain ), anencephaly (absence of the brain), various neural tube defects. In most cases, such defects are not compatible with life.

Often they accompany a fetus with chromosomal pathologies, and it is an anomaly at the level of the chromosome set in this case that is the main negative factor that “interferes” with the formation of the nervous system and the brain at 6-7 obstetric week.

Everything that happens to the future mother and baby now can be described in two words - global restructuring. That is why now a woman should be especially careful and attentive to her health, not be exposed to tobacco smoke, odor of paints, varnishes, radiation, not be in places with strong vibration, do not take medicines and other substances without medical evidence.

The body of the baby is not yet human in the usual sense, but no longer resembles the embryo of an animal. Through translucent membranes and transparent skin, internal organs glide through, which are already beginning to occupy their proper place.

So, this week the only bowel is undergoing transformations. It is divided into three main sections - the stomach, larynx and esophagus. The upper part of the intestine is connected to the only organ of the respiratory system so far - the trachea. The bottom of this week begins to turn into the urogenital sinus.

Formed rectum and appendix. The middle of the intestine goes into the umbilical cord. These days, the laying of the biliary tract has begun, and the pancreas that has appeared begins to produce its own insulin.

As already stated the respiratory organs are still few - only the trachea is present, but this week the formation of the lungs and bronchi begins, a start has already been made. It is on the fifth embryonic week that the formation of vision begins.

The convex part of the anterior cerebral vesicle begins to come forward; it is from this that the development of the optic nerves and retina begins. The eyes still look like dark spots located on the sides of the head. Over time, they will begin to approach the center of the face in the proper place.

This week, the crumbs of the heart becomes a four-chamber, it pumps blood throughout the small body. This helps him blood vessels, which are also actively developing. This week especially large blood vessels grow.

The gender of a child is determined immediately at the moment of conception and remains a big secret until a certain time. 7 obstetric week is no exception. Gender is still indistinguishable. Define it is not possible.

Where the genitals are soon to be, this week a genital tubercle appears. A little later in boys, it will turn into a penis, and in girls - in the labia. In the meantime, bumps in babies of both sexes look the same. It’s impossible to find out the sex of a child. Sex hormones in the child’s body are not yet produced.

Methods of determination sex fetal heartbeatAccording to the blood updates, according to the blood group of the parents, from the point of view of official medicine, they are not reliable and are more reminiscent of fortune telling - the coincidence is possible with a probability of 50% - either a boy or a girl.

The appearance of the baby is still a little like a man, but every day the crumb becomes more and more like him. The kid has a nasal bud this week. And if it were not for wide-set eyes, the face of the crumbs would already resemble a human face.

This week, the inner ear begins to form and the auricles are laid. So far they only look like small cartilage seals, but soon they will become familiar ears, and the baby will be able to hear.

The laying of milk teeth begins, the upper and lower jaws are formed. The spinal column is formed, and the baby these days will “receive” at its full disposal the first neck curve. From the inherent position of the embryo - bent - the baby gradually begins to come out. This week he will begin to unbend the body like a caterpillar.

Stop on the legs yet, but their rudiments have already appeared, and where the heels are soon there are seals - future nails that will move onto the fingers immediately after their formation.

All embryos have a tail. At week 7, he shortens almost twice, in a week or two he will become a rudiment and turn into a tailbone. Lower limbs in children at this period of gestation develop much more slowly than the hands.

His upper limbs now have the appearance of oars or paddles - this is how the hands are formed. The fingers have not yet separated, between them - a thick skin membrane, but very soon they can be counted on an ultrasound.

The umbilical cord is compacted, this week it becomes a connected link between a young, barely formed placenta, which is now just a little more than a centimeter thick, and the baby. The uterine-placental bloodstream begins to debug, but the placenta is still far from full-fledged work. So far the main work on feeding the child is performed by the yolk sac.

Baby on week 7 begins to move. The future mom, naturally, cannot feel this. Until the moment when she begins to feel the stirring of her son or daughter, there is still enough time. However, the absence of sensations does not mean the absence of movements.

At the 7th week according to the obstetric measurement and at the 5th embryonic week the baby begins to bend and unbend the handles - the oars in the wrist area. These are his first movements, which by the end of the week are already given easily and naturally.

A new skill that allows the baby to unbend her body can be noted on an ultrasound if a woman goes to him in this period. At the time of the greatest extension, the so-called CTE, the coccyx-parietal size, usually begins to be measured.

Ultrasound this week is not considered mandatory and is not recommended. If the future mother's state of health does not cause anxiety and fear, she has no pains, unusual discharge, then there is no need for an ultrasound scan.

The doctor may recommend to undergo an ultrasound at this time only in certain situations, when there are very specific indications for the study, without waiting for the first screening prenatal examination, which usually runs from 10-11 weeks to 13 weeks of pregnancy, inclusive.

A woman will have to go to the ultrasound diagnostics right now, if, when registering in consultation with a gynecologist, some doubts, concerns and questions arise. So, ultrasound is now shown:

• to confirm the fact of pregnancy;
• to establish the fact of ectopic, missed abortion;
• to confirm or refute multiple pregnancies;
• for inspection of the pelvic organs for signs of the threat of spontaneous abortion;
• to clarify the duration of pregnancy;
• to exclude pregnancy complications with habitual miscarriage;
• for information about the features of pregnancy, which came due to reproductive techniques, for example, IVF.

Ultrasound on this period is most often carried out with an intravaginal sensor, since the fetus is still very small, so that it can be examined through a denser anterior abdominal wall. The procedure does not take more than 15 minutes, is painless.

This week, the doctor-somnologist necessarily evaluates the viability of the fetus, specifies the number of fruits, compares the size of the ovum with the norms for this period. So far, only two parameters are used. One of them is measured between the inner walls of the membranes. It is called the mean internal diameter of the ovum:

The average internal diameter of the ovum on the 7th week of pregnancy:

A very important indicator is the outline of the ovum. If they are smooth, oval or round, the correct form, then the development of the baby does not cause problems. An egg that has been deformed and has asymmetrical, uneven edges can speak of both the threat of miscarriage and the miscarriage that has begun.

Modern high-resolution devices, expert-class devices, as well as an experienced doctor performing the examination, this week is the key to successful measurement of the CTE. Its norms are as follows.

Kopchiko-parietal size on the 7th week of pregnancy:

Fetal heartbeat at 7th obstetric week sounds quite clearly, the expectant mother will be able to experience incomparable sensations when the doctor lets her hear the heartbeat of her baby, who is only four actual weeks old. Heart rate (heart rate) is now in the range of 129-146 beats per minute.

On the monitor of the ultrasound scanner, the woman will not see her baby in all its glory. But she will be shown a fertilized egg, in which there is a tiny fetus, an embryo that looks like a dark spot in the uterus with heterogeneous spots inside.

The most real threat this week is the threat of miscarriage. Also, pregnancy may be ectopic or stand still, stop development. Some early pathologies are accompanied by severe symptoms - abdominal pain, the appearance of unusual discharge.

Despite the fact that the risk of losing the baby is still high, in the overwhelming majority of cases the doctors manage to provide the necessary assistance to the pregnant woman, and more than 85% of the time, the pregnancy can be maintained.

Do not hesitate to substitute registration. This week is the right time to consult an obstetrician-gynecologist, undergo an examination, pass mandatory tests and additional, if necessary (for example, determine the level of hCG as an indicator of the development of the baby), get your hands on an exchange card.

For more information on fetal development at week 7, see the video below.