The viability scan is a pregnancy scan that is usually done at 6-10 weeks of pregnancy. It is the first scan you will have during your pregnancy and is sometimes called the dating scan.

● Make sure the pregnancy is in the uterus (not ectopic)

● Demonstrate that the baby is alive

● Determine the number of embryos present

● Date the pregnancy and provide an Estimated Due Date (EDD)

● Examine the baby for any early pregnancy abnormalities

● Assess for the presence of internal bleeding

The viability scan is usually carried out through your abdomen, but sometimes it may be necessary to do a transvaginal scan.

We offer non-invasive prenatal testing in the form of simple and safe NIPT, which can be carried out from 10 weeks' gestation. NIPT screens for abnormalities in every chromosome such as, presences of extra chromosome (trisomy), absence of one of the chromosomes in the pair (monosomy), structural alterations, microdeletions as well as the gender of the baby.

The next ultrasound scan recommended for all pregnancies is the nuchal translucency scan. This is carried out between 12 and 14 weeks.

Unfortunately, in some cases, the viability scan may show this:

● The embryo is in the fallopian tube (ectopic pregnancy)

● The embryo is visible but there is no heartbeat

● The sac is visible but there is no embryo. In this case, we will recommend that you have another scan in 7-14 days to see if the pregnancy is viable.