4th Month Of Pregnancy – Fetal Developments, Baby Heartbeats & Reflexes

• At the end of this month the fetus will weigh about six ounces and measure about six to eight inches in length.
• His height starts to catch up to his head size. This helps him lose his top heavy look.
• The fetus will begin using his newly developed reflexes and abilities.
  He stretches, swallows, snoozes and even sucks thumb.
• He has grown eyelashes, eyebrows and even little hair on top.
• The inner structures of the ear that allow him to hear are developing this month. It is best time to read, sing and play music for your unborn child.
• The process of ossification takes place.
  As the long bones of his arms and legs grow cartilage is replaced by spongy, soft bone. Skeletal development will continue even after birth up to adulthood.
• Your baby is practicing the art of breathing. He is inhaling and exhaling amniotic fluid. The lungs are producing cellular fluid and a substance called surfactant.
  The surfactant will assist the development of fetal lungs in the future months.
• Your unborn child is also passing urine that becomes part of the amniotic fluid. Also read about : Amniotic fluid function.
• The placenta this month is about three centimeters in diameter. And the attached umbilical chord is as long as the fetus and continues to grow.
• Fetal blood is pumped through his heart about four miles an hour. It exits through two large arteries in the umbilical chord and on to the placenta.
• In the placenta the baby’s waste products comprising of urine and carbon dioxide are exchanged for oxygenated, nutrient rich blood. This purified blood is returned to the fetus through an umbilical chord vein. Blood pumping within the chord creates pressure, prevents knotting and straightens the chord.

At the doctor

If you were unable to hear the heartbeat of your baby last month you will probably do this month. Women who have chosen to go for an AFP test will have their blood drawn somewhere between week sixteen to eighteen.

Chicken pox (varicella infection) can lead to serious complications in developing child and the mother. If you come in contact with someone with chickenpox for the first time in your life then inform your doctor immediately about the situation. If your blood tests negative for antibodies to the virus, treatment with varicella zoster immune globulin (VZIG) can be effective. If administered within ninety six hours it helps in preventing about eighty percent of the infection.

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