Rise of ‘scanxiety’ puts babies at risk
Third of pregnant women buy extra ultrasounds
‘Treated very seriously’
PREGNANT women have been warned to avoid private ultrasounds, as firms offer multiple scans to assuage their fears.
A study has found that almost a third of women now pay for extra scans while pregnant, with 18 per cent buying three or more.
Many are doing so because of anxiety, despite the NHS offering scans at around 12 weeks and 20 weeks to check on their baby’s health.
The phenomenon of women booking unnecessary repeat scans has been dubbed ‘Scanxiety’, with 36 per cent of those having them admitting doing so simply after ‘feeling anxious about my baby’.
A further third confessed they just wanted to ‘check in’ on their baby without a medical reason.
Parenting site ChannelMum. com claims ‘pop-up’ firms target these women with mobile machines – scanning beyond recommended time limits and with settings potentially harmful to babies.
Two years ago, the Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists said scans to provide ‘keepsake’ snaps of unborn babies should not be carried out in the first ten weeks. Its scientific review concluded that ultrasound, which uses high-frequency soundwaves to provide images, could expose the foetus to ‘small but possible’ unknown risks. A poll of 2,000 women has found the average mother spends £217 on private scans, deem unnecessary by experts.
Mervi Jokinen, practice and standards advisor at the Royal College of Midwives, said: ‘Current advice by the National Institute for Health and Clinical Excellence (NICE) is to have an early scan and then a screening scan for anomalies at around 18-20 weeks.
‘These are recommendations based on the available research and takes into account the harm and benefit of scans. Any further scans beyond these recommendations should be clinically indicated and based on needs of the woman and her developing baby.’
Women said they opt for the scans due to fears about their baby, to discover their sex earlier than the NHS allows, or, in a minority of cases, for 3D or 4D scans or videos of their baby moving in the womb. The Health Protection Agency has said ultrasound scans are safe, but experts say further research is needed to determine if they have long-term adverse effects.
The NHS has said ‘boutique’ souvenir scans require prolonged and more intense ultrasound exposure, presenting a potential risk to a developing baby which cannot be weighed against any necessary benefit.
One in 50 of the women polled by ChannelMum.com admitted paying for nine or 10 extra scans during pregnancy – more than one a month. Site founder Siobhan Freegard said: ‘Having a scan can be a wonderful way to bond with your baby and provide reassurance when you are worried. But mums need to remember it is a medical procedure and as such should to be treated very seriously.’
Mervi Jokinen added: ‘I would encourage women to talk to their developing baby, learn about their baby’s movements, feel and touch and learn the baby’s behaviour before birth.
‘It is also psychologically important to share these activities with the partner if present.
‘Anxieties caused by reliance on technology can have an impact on a woman’s pregnancy, causing undue stress.’