Another Ultrasound - this time in 4D!

We went up to Madison four days after the diagnosis, Dr. Susan Davidson squeezed us into her schedule and she confirmed the diagnosis. My husband and I had prayed that somehow the better quality ultrasound would show something different, or that it was just because Jonah had a full stomach, so although we knew what to expect, it was difficult. On the plus side, we got to see Jonah in 3D (or 4D which is what they call it). The ultrasound tech took a photograph of his face in profile which is just amazing!

We met with a genetics counselor and she explained the diagnosis and what would happen. She explained the stay in the NICU and the chromosonal problems that are often associated with this birth defect, specifically, that there was a 1 in 3 chance that the baby has Down's Syndrome. She recommended an amniocentesis so the doctor's would know what, if any, other complications they were dealing with at birth. She wanted to do it at our next appointment but since it has a small chance of premature birth, we said we'd rather wait as long as possible so that if we did deliver the baby would be OK.

I regretfully told our close friends and family the news about the diagnosis but kept things pretty quiet, after all, we couldn't do anything at the moment and I didn't want to spoil the baby shower or get all weepy at work. I had done a lot of research on Duodenal Atresia and felt scared at the 5% mortality rate but had convinced myself we would be one of the lucky ones.

Another Ultrasound & a Wrong Diagnosis

We headed back for another ultrasound to find out about the marginal placenta previa, prepared that if it hadn't moved I'd need to possibly be on bedrest the last month or two. The technician spent a lot of time with us, which I didn't notice at first, but when she asked us to stick around while she went to show them to the doctor, I knew something was wrong...something more than the placenta position. When the doctor came in and asked me to lay back down so he could see a live view, I got downright nervous. He told us that he suspected Jonah had a Duodenal Atresia, where the stomach is not attached to the intestines. They decided this based on the classic "double bubble" shape of his stomach, babies swallow amniotic fluid in utero but can't pass it so the stomach fills up. It requires surgery soon after birth and is very rare (1 in 6000 births) but has a 95% survival rate and usually requires a 2 week stay in the NICU. I was horrified, my beautiful baby boy would need to stay in the hospital rather than coming home with us, and there was a 5% chance that he could die! I couldn't believe it and I cried leaving the ultrasound room and sporatically for days afterwards. We made an appointment with my doctor the next day and she referred us up to Madison to the high-risk perinatologist, I would now need to deliver in Madison, not in my hometown hospital as planned.