Homerton: Fetal welfare

GP information

Fetal welfare

Run by specialist midwives, we offer a range of antenatal care for those women who are considered to be at a higher risk of complications during pregnancy that may affect both mother and baby.

Services available

Regular follow-up for women with:

essential hypertension (high blood pressure)
pre- eclampsia: high blood pressure with proteinuria (leakage of protein into the urine)
small for gestational age babies (SGA)
babies with intrauterine growth retardation
screening for diabetes in pregnancy.

Fetal cardiotocograph (CTG)

Is a record of the fetal heartrate and uterine activity. This procedure is done from 26 weeks gestation, monitoring takes approximately 20 minutes.

Biophysical profile (BPP)

This is a scan that examines the babys body movements and tone; it also measures the amount of amniotic fluid around baby and the heart rate. This gives an indication of the babys wellbeing.

Injections

Some women may require injections during pregnancy for a variety of reasons. For example, if you are regarded as being at a higher risk of deep vein thrombosis you are required to take daily blood-thinning medication (anti-coagulants) during pregnancy. We will show you how to self-administer this correctly, safely and with confidence.

Depending on individual requirements other injections may include iron and steroids.