When can I have an ultrasound scan? When can you see the baby’s heartbeat?Īn ultrasound scan may be able to detect a pregnancy and a heartbeat in a normal pregnancy at around 6 weeks, but this varies a great deal and isn’t usually advised. If you bleed after a vaginal scan, it will most likely be because there was already blood pooled higher in the vagina and the probe dislodged it. There is no evidence that having a vaginal or an abdominal scan will cause a miscarriage or harm your baby. That may give some information about your pregnancy, but it is less clear than an internal scan and that could possibly delay diagnosis. If you don’t want a trans-vaginal scan, you can ask for a trans-abdominal scan. He or she then moves the scanner over the gel, sometimes pressing down, until the uterus (womb) and pregnancy can be seen. The person doing the scan spreads a special gel on your lower abdomen (below your belly button and above the line of pubic hair). It may also be offered after 11 or 12 weeks if a trans-abdominal scan doesn’t give a clear enough picture.įrom 11 or 12 weeks, including at the routine booking-in scan, it is more common to have a trans-abdominal scan. This gives the clearest and most accurate picture in early pregnancy. In early pregnancy, especially before 11 weeks, it is usual to have a trans-vaginal (internal) scan, where a probe is placed in the vagina. There are two ways of doing an ultrasound scan. Ultrasound scans in pregnancy may be routine or they may be offered because of pain or bleeding or because of problems in a previous pregnancy. Simply Say – supporting someone you know.