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In the first trimester, cardiac activity can be visualized and the fetal heart motion quantified by obstetric ultrasonography. A study of 32 normal pregnancies showed that fetal heart motion was visible at a mean human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) level of 10,000 UI/L (range 8650–12,200). [19]
The first ten weeks of gestational age is the period of embryogenesis and together with the first three weeks of prenatal development make up the first trimester of pregnancy. From the 10th week of gestation (8th week of development), the developing embryo is called a fetus.
Also starting about week 12, the thoracic diaphragm moves up and down as if the fetus were breathing, but this movement disappears about week 16 and does not resume until the third trimester. [16] Movements such as kicking continue, and the mother usually feels movement for the first time, an event called quickening, during the fifth month. [17]
The heart bulges, further develops, and begins to beat in a regular rhythm. Septum primum appears. [1] Pharyngeal arches, grooves which will form structures of the face and neck, form. The neural tube closes. The ears begin to form as otic pits. Arm buds and a tail are visible. Lung bud, the first traits of the lung appear. [1]
Diagram of the human fetal circulatory system. The heart and blood vessels of the circulatory system form relatively early during embryonic development, but continue to grow and develop in complexity in the growing fetus. A functional circulatory system is a biological necessity since mammalian tissues can not grow more than a few cell layers ...
The heart rate increases, but generally not above 100 beats/ minute. Total systematic vascular resistance decreases by 20% secondary to the vasodilatory effect of progesterone. Overall, the systolic and diastolic blood pressure drops 10–15 mm Hg in the first trimester and then returns to baseline in the second half of pregnancy. [6]
The fetal circulation is composed of the placenta, umbilical blood vessels encapsulated by the umbilical cord, heart and systemic blood vessels. A major difference between the fetal circulation and postnatal circulation is that the lungs are not used during the fetal stage resulting in the presence of shunts to move oxygenated blood and ...
In the first trimester, a standard ultrasound examination typically includes: [12] Gestational sac size, location, and number; Identification of the embryo and/or yolk sac; Measurement of fetal length (known as the crown-rump length) Fetal number, including number of amnionic sacs and chorionic sacs for multiple gestations; Embryonic/fetal ...