Today I had a pregnancy in the 17th week and used the ultrason to show the cardiac activity by default and measure the different dimensions. Everything seemed normal, but somehow I couldn't find the beating heart. After a long search on different levels and positions, I called my boss. He also looked for at least 10 minutes and finally confirmed my suspicion: Infans mortuus.
Of course, the patient was infinitely sad. But so were we. The foetus already had - as is usual for the 17th week - a clear infant form, which makes it all the harder.
I wanted to write down this experience and process it. Fortunately, this does not happen too often, but it's an important step in my career as a gynecologist.
I wish the woman good luck and strength for the future.