It’s unsettling to leave a doctor’s appointment where they couldn’t find the heartbeat after you’ve already heard it once. Even worse, they won’t even bother looking for it again for at least a week. Most mothers are left wondering if the fetal heartbeat may suddenly stop and start again.
The good news is that we’ll show you why it can happen. However, we’ll also cover the scenarios where things don’t work out so well.
What Could Cause a Fetal Heartbeat to Disappear?
Although it’s unsettling, it’s not uncommon for doctors to miss a heartbeat during a regular exam. Common causes include incorrect positioning or an oversight.
Human Error
Using a Doppler to monitor your baby in the time between ultrasounds is a terrific method to ease your worries. However, your doctor may overlook your baby’s heartbeat if you go in too late in your pregnancy. This is a common occurrence, and ladies usually just pick it up at their next appointment.
Your Baby Has Moved
The lack of visual feedback is one of the fundamental limitations of dopplers. Your baby may try to avoid the doppler in the early weeks of pregnancy since they have so much room to move around. Some mothers even claim that their infants aggressively wriggled away from it.
Your Dates Are Wrong
It might be difficult to determine the exact date of conception and, by extension, the gestational age of the fetus. However, a week is an eternity when it comes to fetal heart rates. If the sonographer is unable to detect a heartbeat at the 8-week scan, you should not worry. A 7-week gestation period is not impossible.
You Have an Anterior Placenta
It is possible for the placenta to develop in the anterior portion of the uterus. In most cases, this is not an issue, but it will prevent a doppler from locating your baby’s heartbeat.
You Have a Tilted Uterus
To those who suffer with a slanted uterus, know that you are not alone. Somewhere between 20% and 30% of women have a uterus that is tilted backwards. It’s not a huge deal, but it will make listening for your baby’s heartbeat more difficult.
You Are Plus-Sized
Being overweight increases the distance the ultrasound transducer must travel to reach the fetus. Because of this, your sonographer may have a more difficult time locating the heartbeat. Get a transvaginal ultrasound if this is causing you discomfort.
A lack of a heartbeat is unfortunately sometimes indicative of a more serious issue. In such unfortunate circumstances, the heartbeat will remain absent:
Chromosomal Abnormalities
As much as 60% of miscarriages can be attributed to chromosomal disorders. They develop when an egg or sperm cell has abnormal chromosomes. A miscarriage may arise if the pregnancy is not allowed to progress normally.
It’s possible the problem is genetic, so it’s worth looking into. In most cases, however, the issue was due to a one-off hiccup in cell division that would not occur again.
Problems With Blood Supply
Problems with blood flow to the placenta can be caused by autoimmune disorders and conditions that increase the risk of blood clots. The infant’s heart will stop beating if the oxygen supply is cut off.
Infection
Miscarriages can be brought on by a wide variety of infectious diseases, including rubella, CMV, bacterial vaginosis, and various sexually transmitted diseases.
Issue With the Umbilical Cord
The umbilical cord may get constricted or tangled in rare occasions. Insufficient blood flow to the developing embryo means the pregnancy will end in miscarriage.
Low Progesterone
During the first trimester of pregnancy, progesterone is the hormone that must be present to keep the baby alive. The risk of a miscarriage occurring naturally increases if levels drop too low. Fortunately, progesterone supplements can help prevent this from happening again.
Can a Fetal Heartbeat Come Back?
Your baby’s heartbeat may emerge during a subsequent scan if it was missed initially due to an error or because of the abnormal positioning of your placenta or uterus.
However, if the heartbeat stops because of a problem with the umbilical cord, blood flow, infection, hormones, or chromosomal abnormalities, it will never start again. A miscarriage or stillbirth is the tragic outcome of such pregnancies.