Worried about fetal pole growth - can anyone help?

[Holdingontohope36]

I’m 6 weeks pregnant through IVF and on Wednesday (5+4) I went to my clinic for a scan and blood test following some cramps and bleeding. It was discovered I had a twin pregnancy but one gestational sac was small and empty and the other much larger, with a yolk sac and 1mm fetal pole. They said the smaller one likely wouldn’t make it (especially as my HCG was rising but not really high enough for a twin pregnancy) and to come back in a couple of days for a rescan and another blood test. I went in yesterday and, as predicted, the smaller one had gone. It was sad but what worries me more is that the larger, healthier sac hadn’t progressed. The fetal pole still measured 1mm. The doctor was a bit worried, but then my blood result came through and showed my HCG was still rising (up 52% in 48 hours - my number is now 8,800). She sounded more hopeful and now says it’s a waiting game to see whether fetus grows. Has anyone else had a slow-growing fetal pole? Doctor said it could just be that it was too early for her to get accurate measurements but I’m freaking out 😔

[LCharlton]

It's very early and when it's just 1mm it's very hard for them to measure small changes, you need to hang in there and see how things go. Slow growth can be a sign of a problem, yes, but often the fetal pole only really starts growing at 6 weeks so you don't need to worry right now. When it gets going it's meant to grow about 1mm per day so the key thing is how it's looking in a week's time. When I had a slow-growing fetal pole and ended up having a miscarriage, it was still only 3mm by nearly 8 weeks. 1mm before 6 weeks doesn't sound like a problem. Wishing you loads of luck xx

[Holdingontohope36 in reply to LCharlton]

Thanks so much for replying. I think what I’m confused about is that everything I’ve read says what you’re saying - the fetal pole only starts growing at 6 weeks. But the doctor seemed concerned that she visualised it on Wednesday and by Friday it was the same size. Not sure if that’s a good sign... but my hormone is still going up, so I can’t be miscarrying? I’m so stressed and confused, which probably isn’t good for the pregnancy if it’s viable! I’m so sorry to hear about your loss.Did you end up having a successful pregnancy? I’ve had repeat miscarriages and am starting to lose hope, so would love to hear if you had a positive end to your pregnancy journey x

[LCharlton in reply to Holdingontohope36]

I really hope everything is ok for you - definitely don't panic, it may well all be absolutely fine, you just have to hold tight and wait.

It's lovely of you to ask about my story - my miscarriage was at the end of March and that was my first pregnancy, after our first round of ICSI. It had been a slow-growing blastocyst as well and I had very low HCG levels, so it was slow from the start and something with the embryo must've been not quite right. We're hoping to do another cycle in the autumn.

Thinking of you and wishing all the best xx