Pregnancy: 6 weeks

6th week of pregnancy is critical for the embryo, because just at this time it is most susceptible to various factors that are more or less able to disrupt the development process.

The nerve tube is completely closed this week, at the end of it the brain of the child begins to form. On the face of the baby, eyes begin to appear - two tiny, shaped like cups, in the middle of which you can see tiny pigment spots. The heart of the baby at 6 weeks looks like a small tube, but despite its tiny dimensions, the heart is already starting to contract. Using an ultrasound scanner, you can hear the heart rhythms of a small organism. Also this week, small tubercles are formed, which are the beginnings of the future handles and legs, the larynx develops, certain parts of the inner ear develop.

The development of limbs and the brain at the 6th week of pregnancy is very fast. The head begins to take the usual contours, ears and eyes begin to appear. The embryo begins to develop the simplest versions of internal organs (stomach, lungs, etc.). On ultrasound, you can see how the future child will move. The length of the embryo is about 2-4 mm from the parietal zone to the sacrum. Measuring the full growth of the child is quite difficult, because his legs are pinched to the chest.

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Signs of pregnancy at week 6

6th week of pregnancy proceeds, as a rule, with rather obvious signs. At this time, a woman usually faces a feeling of fatigue, constant drowsiness, morning sickness begins to appear, a slight increase in body temperature, a change in taste preferences. The hormonal background of a woman changes greatly with the onset of pregnancy, the expectant mother may notice increased salivation, may begin to feel sharper different smells. Many pregnant women at 6 weeks already begin to feel a manifestation of toxicosis. Nausea can torment not only in the morning, but after eating or some smells.

Chest

6 week of pregnancy not only changes the body from the inside, you can also notice some external changes. For example, in the mammary glands blood supply is increased. Breast due to this becomes slightly larger, the sensitivity of the nipples increases, tingling and itching may appear in them. The color of the areola also changes - it acquires a darker shade.

Soreness and increased sensitivity of the breast is one of the first signs of pregnancy. First of all it is connected with hormonal reorganization of an organism which is directed on preparation of mammary glands to milk production and feeding. Such symptoms can be during the first three months of pregnancy.

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Stomach

At the 6th week of pregnancy, a woman may have a waist loss, especially if she is waiting for a second (or third) child. Favorite narrow jeans can be badly fastened, press on the stomach. 6 weeks of pregnancy, despite the early period, is the period when you can think about purchasing special clothes for pregnant women.

Visible by the changes may not be at this time, it is quite natural.

Uterus

The uterus at the beginning of the first weeks does not increase significantly. The female body intensively produces the hormone progesterone necessary during this period, which helps to preserve the fetus in the uterus. The action of the hormone is spread not only on the uterus, but also on the entire smooth muscles of the internal organs. Progesterone relaxes the uterus, preventing it from contracting. 6th week of pregnancy represents a rather vulnerable period of development for the embryo, as any negative factors can provoke rejection of the fetus by the woman's body.

Drawing pains in the abdomen

If the 6th week of pregnancy begins with soreness in the lower abdomen, perhaps this is due to the stretching of the uterine muscles. In this case, there may be a drawing pain, cramping. If the soreness in the lower abdomen is constant, intensified toward evening, after minor exertion, then perhaps this is a symptom of the threat of miscarriage, especially if the soreness is accompanied by spotting.

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Back pain

In most cases, the 6th week of pregnancy in a woman begins with low back pain. Doctors consider this a natural phenomenon, which is explained by the effect of progesterone on supporting ligaments of vertebral discs. Pain in the lower back of this nature takes place approximately to the 20th week of pregnancy.

In some cases, the pain provokes other unpleasant factors. For example, back pain can be associated with urinary tract infection, the threat of spontaneous abortion, ectopic pregnancy. Usually, apart from soreness about pathology, there are other emerging symptoms, but in any case it is necessary to consult a doctor and determine the source of the pain.

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Analyzes at the 6th week of pregnancy

At the first visit to the gynecologist a venous blood test is appointed, which will help to establish the presence of antibodies in the body of a woman to toxoplasmosis, herpes, rubella, and the like.

Rubella disease is the greatest danger to the fetus in case a woman is sick when she is already pregnant, especially in the first three months of pregnancy. The carrier of the viral infection of herpes according to statistics is 90%, the analysis will help to determine if there is a virus in the body, and at what phase it is currently (acute, sleeping or the disease occurred in the early stages of pregnancy).

6th week of pregnancy, as already mentioned, is a very vulnerable period for the fetus, therefore any infectious disease can lead to rather serious consequences.

Together with the analysis of blood, a woman takes a swab of genital organs for a microflora, an analysis of urine, feces, is sent to the first ultrasound. In a women's consultation, women usually register at the 6th week of pregnancy, while a woman is weighed, her stomach is measured, etc. With a view to further monitoring the course of pregnancy.

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HCG

In the first three months of pregnancy, chorionic gonadotropin (abbreviated as hCG) plays a very important role in the preservation of the fetus. This function is later assigned to the placenta. This hormone is extremely important in the female body, especially when it's 6 weeks pregnant. HCG is involved in the synthesis of testosterone, which is important for the male embryo, as testosterone is involved in the development of genital organs and affects the adrenal glands of the embryo.

Chorionic gonadotropin helps determine if a woman is pregnant or not in the first days of menstruation, as it appears in the urine and blood from the second week of pregnancy. It is on the presence of this hormone in the urine that all modern tests of early pregnancy determination are based. However, a reliable blood test for hCG, as the level of the hormone in it is higher, but it takes several days to wait for the results.

Progesterone

In medicine, progesterone is known as a pregnancy hormone. The development of this hormone occurs in the yellow body (iron formed after ovulation). After 16 weeks of pregnancy in the body to produce hormones begins to form the placenta.

Progesterone in the female body is responsible for preparing the uterus for fixing the fetal egg in it, after that it helps to keep the pregnancy. This hormone also affects the nervous system of a woman, preparing her for pregnancy and the upcoming birth. Progesterone does not allow the uterus to contract, thereby preventing rejection of the fetal egg, and also contributes to the increase in the uterus. Also, progesterone affects the female breast, more precisely on those parts in the mammary gland, where milk production will occur.

When there is a 6 week gestation, the hormone level should be in the range of 16-20 nmol / l. With deviations in any direction, it is possible to assume some violations. If the indices are too high, a possible cause is a cirrhosis, a violation of the placenta. Also, the level of progesterone is increased in case of multiple pregnancies.

Low values are observed with spontaneous abortion, delayed fetal development, pregnancy fading, ectopic pregnancy.

What happens at 6 weeks of pregnancy?

The process of developing the embryo continues at a rapid pace, further laying of important organs and systems takes place. At week 6, the effect of various negative factors (medication, alcohol, excessive physical exertion) can not only harm the fetus, but even kill it.

Despite its tiny size and weight, the heart of the embryo knocks twice as fast as the mother's, but has not yet fully formed: it will further divide into the atrium.

At 6 weeks of pregnancy, the embryo begins to appear two small tubercles in the place where the hands will subsequently develop, later two more on the site of the legs begin to form. In parallel, the formation of cartilaginous tissue occurs, from which later the bones, tendons, etc. Will develop. Also, the development of the thorax takes place.

6th week of pregnancy "changes" the face of the baby: jaw, nose, mouth begin to appear, ear ears develop, the rudiments of the teeth are laid. The eyes, which in comparison with other organs look very large, gradually begin to converge.

The development of the intestinal tube of the embryo is proceeding quite quickly, from which the digestive, respiratory, excretory, and intestinal systems will subsequently be formed. The process of development of internal organs begins: the liver, stomach, pancreas, lungs. At 6 weeks, one of the most important organs of immunity - the thymus gland - begins to develop.

At this time the process of active closure of the neural tube of the embryo begins, from which the brain of the child will finally form in the future. At this stage, gyruses, cavities are already formed, control of the heart and muscles of the embryo appears, together with this the nerve cells begin to actively divide. That's why the future mother needs to treat herself as gently as possible. It should receive only positive emotions, use a sufficient amount of vitamins and trace elements with food. It is compulsory at this time to take folic acid, which plays a decisive role in the development of the unborn child.

The placenta is attached to the inner wall of the uterus. From the 6th week of pregnancy, it begins to develop intensively, until at this stage the placenta is still large, by the end of the period it will have a weight of about 800 grams. With the help of the umbilical cord, the placenta connects the mother's body with the fetus and thus supplies him with oxygen and the necessary nutrients from the mother's body.

Ultrasound at 6 weeks of gestation

Among the necessary tests in the early stages of pregnancy is ultrasound. At this time, ultrasound is primarily informative, with its help determine the number of embryos in the uterus, the location, the correspondence of height and weight to the norm at this stage of development, the expected date of delivery. In a multiple pregnancy, ultrasound will show two (or more) fetal sac, in the future the woman will be recommended more frequent passage of ultrasound, since in this case the risks of development of various complications increase 10 times.

In a normal single-pregnancy pregnancy, ultrasound will show a bean-like tiny embryo with small bumps in the place where the arms and legs develop.

Fetal size at week 6 of pregnancy

At the 6th week of pregnancy, the position in which the woman is located is not yet noticeable in the form of a rounded tummy. But, despite the fact that the belly does not increase in appearance, a woman can feel that some of her things have become tight and uncomfortable, this is due to the peculiar protection of a tiny organism inside a woman. At this time, can pull in the abdomen, as there is a natural stretching of the abdominal muscles supporting the enlarged uterus.

The size of the embryo is about 4 mm, this week it has also changed significantly. By the end of 6 weeks the formation of the basis of the nervous system of the baby is completed. The embryo already has a tiny beating heart, a brain, a lumbar department.

Above the heart is a part of the nerve groove, from which the brain hemispheres are subsequently formed. The 6th week of pregnancy is characterized by the fact that during this period the brain of a small organism tries to control the movements of the embryo, and the liver begins the production of its very first blood cells.

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Interruption of pregnancy at week 6

Artificial termination of pregnancy occurs almost blindly, and many circumstances can lead to adverse consequences. Interruption of pregnancy is carried out in the hospital, it is recommended that some tests (smear, blood, ultrasound) be performed before the operation to ensure that pregnancy is uterine, there are no infectious diseases, etc.

The 6th week of pregnancy is quite early and abortion is a vacuum or medication. Each method has its own merits and demerits. At the beginning of conception, a fetal egg is not connected to the uterine wall, so its removal occurs much easier than at later dates.

In case of medical abortion, the doctor must give an explanation of the process. Preparations for the artificial termination of pregnancy are currently produced by several companies, but the action is almost the same for all: when taking the tablets, the fetal development stops, resulting in the body rejecting the dead fetus. The doctor must check the process of rejection of the fetal egg. After taking medications, every woman has a different process of rejection, in most cases no sensations appear. Sometimes there may be a pulling feeling in the lower abdomen. In this case, the process of rejection is accompanied by abundant and painful bleeding, with blood clots. The menstruation can last for up to two weeks after a medical abortion, after which it is necessary to appear to a specialist.

After abortion with the help of tablets, a number of problems may appear. First of all, this is that pregnancy can not be interrupted, but it is not recommended to keep it in future because of medical indications. In these cases, vacuum aspiration (mini-abortion) is performed. There may also be severe pain, nausea, dizziness, too much bleeding. The merits of this method include the absence of an operation in which the uterus can be injured or get infected.

Abortion with the help of vacuum aspiration is also recommended in the early stages of pregnancy. The operation is performed under local (sometimes under general) anesthesia. The method is to insert a special device into the uterus, which under a low pressure sucks the fetal egg out of the uterus, after which the doctor may consider it necessary to scrape the uterus in order to eliminate the remains of the embryo. Mini-abortion is a reliable means of abortion, but it has a number of disadvantages. Such an operation can lead to injury to the walls of the uterus, infection of the genitals, violation of the hormonal background of the woman (which may result in the development of such serious diseases as endometriosis), dysfunction of the ovaries, infertility, complications in future pregnancies. After the artificial termination of pregnancy in the future, the possibility of developing pregnancy outside the uterus increases. In the subsequent pregnancy, it is possible to have abnormal labor, stillbirth, and diseases of the newborn due to disruption of the uterine vessels.

6th week of pregnancy is one of the most important stages in embryo development. During the first three months of the fetus, the main organs and systems are formed, the eyes, ears, hands, feet, etc. Develop. Negative influence of even the most insignificant factor, at first glance, can disrupt the development of this or that organ. It is impossible to say exactly what will affect certain substances that enter the body of a pregnant woman.