(2015/10) Oct 2015 Mummies

jerlicious said:
Hi all. Does anyone knows what's the diff btw oscar and harmony tests? What are they for? And the cost?? TIA!
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OSCAR test is quite a comprehensive test also known more popularly as a test for down syndrome. However, it tests more than that. It will test out 2 other chromosomal anomaly (down syndrome is a chromosomal anomaly called Trisomy 21). Besides this, OSCAR test will also help to test if there are any abnormal growths in your uterus that will impede the baby's normal growth. It also test for one other growth problem but I forgot. The total cost of OSCAR test which includes 1 blood test and one scan is roughly about $500 for Raffles Hospital. Probably differs from place to place. OSCAR test can have a 90+% accuracy in testing for Down Syndrome. Usually, if your result comes out to be low risk, no other tests will be required. If the risk is moderate or high, further testing would be required. One of the method of further testing is by drawing some of the amniotic fluid (AKA the fluid in the water bag). This method also has its own risk which is that it has a low risk of causing a miscarriage.

As such, recently they have made a much safer test which doesnt require any amniotic fluid to be draw. One of these tests is called the Harmony test. Harmony test will be able to determine up to 98% accuracy if the baby has got down syndrome or the 2 other chromosomal anomaly problem. Harmony test is more expensive than the OSCAR test and at Raffles Hospital, it is estimated to be $900. Some of you may ask if you can go straight into doing the Harmony test and the answer is yes. However, I think it would be more cost effective for you (if you are say 35 years and below), to do the OSCAR test first since you are considered a low risk pregnancy and OSCAR test is not only cheaper but also able to detect more problems if any. Should you be above 35 years old or have had family history of any chromosomal anomaly, you may want to just go straight to the Harmony testing to safe some cost from having to do both OSCAR and Harmony. Of course, if money is not an issue, you can just go ahead with OSCAR test first followed by Harmony test.

Important note: There is a time period for the OSCAR test and if I am not wrong it is between week 9 and week 14 of pregnancy. If you would like to carry out any of the above tests, I recommend that you let your gynae know as soon as possible so that he/she will be able to advise you on your next steps.
 


use of make up is quite harmless, the skin doesnt absorb much and much less the possibility of it transferring to the baby.
In fact I have consulted gynae for use of topical skin medication and she said a few applications is harmless. it takes a lot to overdose and harm the baby.

so mommies can still stay pretty pretty!
 
zaclin29 said:
It is not surprise if yr hubby doesn't want u to wear make up at all... Maybe he's afraid of all the chemicals from the make up that is being absorbed into yr skin will get transferred to the baby...

He's being normal... Cos I have a number of friends who stopped using make up, perfumes, lotions, face cream etc cos they do not want any "chemicals" on themselves, thinking it will be passed on to the baby...

My hubby doesn't allow me to eat fish cos he said all fish got some level of mercury...
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mainly the deep sea ones like tuna have higher level of mercury. shallow water fishes are fine. those around SEA are ok... avoid all fish might backfire as u might be missing out some important nutrients.
 
do let your hairstylists know that you are preg... they need to be careful when messaging and need to avoid certain products as well. just let them know and they will know what to do usually...

my regular stylist at jean yip and my wife's at Red's both know what to avoid for preg ladies...
 
chloebbkia said:
I drink Annum materna vanilla flavor. I'm taking it at least twice a day - morning and night time.
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I wanted to try taking milk bt... now whenever i tink of food/drink or wat to eat, i'm just like 反胃 or feel like vomiting :( So im hoping tat there is sumtin I can eat just to make sure my babies gets the nutrition. I have been forcing myself to eat & it is not easy thou.. Im hungry but I dun like the 'feel like vomitting' feel :(
 
Angie Lim said:
I wanted to try taking milk bt... now whenever i tink of food/drink or wat to eat, i'm just like 反胃 or feel like vomiting :( So im hoping tat there is sumtin I can eat just to make sure my babies gets the nutrition. I have been forcing myself to eat & it is not easy thou.. Im hungry but I dun like the 'feel like vomitting' feel :(
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Me too... especially during evening time.. dinner totally no appetite to eat..
 
angeleeyore said:
Me too... especially during evening time.. dinner totally no appetite to eat..
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Me too. Usually i will eat a fair bit during lunch but during dinner i usually got no appetite. I also realize that i prefer food that are more heavy in taste? Like.. curry chicken etc. Plain chinese food dont look appealing to me :X
 
From what I know, OSCAR takes abt 2-3 days for the result to be out. For Harmony, it'll take about 2-3 weeks cos the samples are sent to US to analyze.

Btw, I've asked my gynae at TMC. He charges approximately $300 for OSCAR and $1500 for Harmony.
 
pinnpinn said:
Me too. Usually i will eat a fair bit during lunch but during dinner i usually got no appetite. I also realize that i prefer food that are more heavy in taste? Like.. curry chicken etc. Plain chinese food dont look appealing to me :X
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Same for me....no appetite for dinner
 
TiG3rR said:
OSCAR test is quite a comprehensive test also known more popularly as a test for down syndrome. However, it tests more than that. It will test out 2 other chromosomal anomaly (down syndrome is a chromosomal anomaly called Trisomy 21). Besides this, OSCAR test will also help to test if there are any abnormal growths in your uterus that will impede the baby's normal growth. It also test for one other growth problem but I forgot. The total cost of OSCAR test which includes 1 blood test and one scan is roughly about $500 for Raffles Hospital. Probably differs from place to place. OSCAR test can have a 90+% accuracy in testing for Down Syndrome. Usually, if your result comes out to be low risk, no other tests will be required. If the risk is moderate or high, further testing would be required. One of the method of further testing is by drawing some of the amniotic fluid (AKA the fluid in the water bag). This method also has its own risk which is that it has a low risk of causing a miscarriage.

As such, recently they have made a much safer test which doesnt require any amniotic fluid to be draw. One of these tests is called the Harmony test. Harmony test will be able to determine up to 98% accuracy if the baby has got down syndrome or the 2 other chromosomal anomaly problem. Harmony test is more expensive than the OSCAR test and at Raffles Hospital, it is estimated to be $900. Some of you may ask if you can go straight into doing the Harmony test and the answer is yes. However, I think it would be more cost effective for you (if you are say 35 years and below), to do the OSCAR test first since you are considered a low risk pregnancy and OSCAR test is not only cheaper but also able to detect more problems if any. Should you be above 35 years old or have had family history of any chromosomal anomaly, you may want to just go straight to the Harmony testing to safe some cost from having to do both OSCAR and Harmony. Of course, if money is not an issue, you can just go ahead with OSCAR test first followed by Harmony test.

Important note: There is a time period for the OSCAR test and if I am not wrong it is between week 9 and week 14 of pregnancy. If you would like to carry out any of the above tests, I recommend that you let your gynae know as soon as possible so that he/she will be able to advise you on your next steps.
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Million thanks for the info. =)
 
I've been having slight PMS-like cramps on n off over the past 2 days together with bloating. no spotting. anyone else experiencing this too? My sis says it's normal cos uterus expanding.
 
franch said:
I've been having slight PMS-like cramps on n off over the past 2 days together with bloating. no spotting. anyone else experiencing this too? My sis says it's normal cos uterus expanding.
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I have slight cramps as well but not to severe ... I also have back pains off and on as though it's PMS
 
pinnpinn said:
Me too. Usually i will eat a fair bit during lunch but during dinner i usually got no appetite. I also realize that i prefer food that are more heavy in taste? Like.. curry chicken etc. Plain chinese food dont look appealing to me :X
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same same! I eat very little for dinner but usually will get hungry ard 10-11pm... *faint*
 
pinnpinn said:
Me too. Usually i will eat a fair bit during lunch but during dinner i usually got no appetite. I also realize that i prefer food that are more heavy in taste? Like.. curry chicken etc. Plain chinese food dont look appealing to me :X
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Haha me too! Not much appetite for dinner recently and also cravings for more spicy food or 重口味 food.. I also feel bloated most of the time...
 
net73 said:
I will trim my own eyebrows and also put on false eyelashes. Are all these ok?
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I did this too, however I am getting lazier to do it as fatigue took a toll on me.

If you have the energy to do it, why not? Make yourself happier.
 
MrsWee said:
Just got back from my first check. I'm almost 6 weeks in but only a sac is detected. Was given hormone pills. Will go for another check next week to see if there's any developments. If not it means it has stopped growing.
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I'm the same. The doc also scared me by asking me if i have been bleeding etc. He didn't give me any hormone pills though but several here have said it's pretty common not to detect more than that at 6 weeks. He did an abdominal scan only which I found out online cannot detect anything much so early in the pregnancy. I'll be going back to my regular gynae next fri to check. Most likely a v scan can detect more n hopefully the fetus has grown by then. *fingers crossed*
 
I need advise on how to overcome the constipation.. I have taken oats prunes and taking fruits too.. It isn't helping much... I too get slight cramps occasionally..
 
franch said:
I'm the same. The doc also scared me by asking me if i have been bleeding etc. He didn't give me any hormone pills though but several here have said it's pretty common not to detect more than that at 6 weeks. He did an abdominal scan only which I found out online cannot detect anything much so early in the pregnancy. I'll be going back to my regular gynae next fri to check. Most likely a v scan can detect more n hopefully the fetus has grown by then. *fingers crossed*
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I am going for my week 6 appointment today. Kinda excited but also prepared to go back again if there is nothing much. Jiayou everyone!
 
aautumnn said:
I am going for my week 6 appointment today. Kinda excited but also prepared to go back again if there is nothing much. Jiayou everyone!
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if ur doc can do a transvaginal scan, i think it would be much clearer. the stand-in gynae i went to, didn't have that.
 
joey2015 said:
I need advise on how to overcome the constipation.. I have taken oats prunes and taking fruits too.. It isn't helping much... I too get slight cramps occasionally..
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I take prune juice and I try to eat either 1-2 apples or kiwi every day. There was one time my stools were so hard there was actually blood. I read online that it's quite normal, but when I highlighted to my gynae, he took note and asked me to let him know if it happens again, as he will refer me to a colonrectal specialist. After that, I started to take fruits religiously :D

I realised that I got the hard stools after eating this fried CNY snack, which I think might have been too oily. So I try to avoid oily and fried foods too.

I also get slight cramps as well. I asked my gynae and he said it is normal due to uterus expanding.
 
aautumnn said:
I read that before but I thought it will be kinda uncomfortable to do that. Have u do that scan before ?
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my regular gynae usually does transvaginal ultrasound as long as married cos it is apparently clearer n don't need full bladder to see. i don't feel uncomfy at all cos she puts enough lubricant on it n must relax ur muscles. but i've ever had a transvaginal ultrasound at KKH n it was a bit uncomfy. as long as u relax n don't tense up, it should be ok.
 
joey2015 said:
I need advise on how to overcome the constipation.. I have taken oats prunes and taking fruits too.. It isn't helping much... I too get slight cramps occasionally..
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Prune juice works like laxatives for me. One cup and I'll clear everything 1-2 hrs time
 


franch said:
I'm the same. The doc also scared me by asking me if i have been bleeding etc. He didn't give me any hormone pills though but several here have said it's pretty common not to detect more than that at 6 weeks. He did an abdominal scan only which I found out online cannot detect anything much so early in the pregnancy. I'll be going back to my regular gynae next fri to check. Most likely a v scan can detect more n hopefully the fetus has grown by then. *fingers crossed*
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The gynae actually did an ultrasound first before doing the v scan cos she wanted a more detailed look at it. She did ask if I had any bleeding or cramps too. Let's see how things go. Don't worry :)
 
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