Patient's question:
Yesterday, I went for the prenatal check-up on time. The doctor kept talking non-stop, and when I got home, I basically didn't remember anything. The only thing I could see was some scribbled notes on the check-up report saying something about "no yolk sac echo" or something like that, which was hard to read. I'm a bit worried.What kind of help do I need: What is a yolk sac?
Doctor's answer:
The yolk sac is the precursor of the embryo, so the yolk sac develops first, followed by the embryo. The yolk sac is located inside the gestational sac. It provides hormonal support to the embryo, rather than serving as food for the gestational sac. If a gestational sac is observed within the uterus and an embryonic pole with a yolk sac is visible inside it, intrauterine pregnancy can be confirmed."Absent pregnancy echo" refers to the absence of an embryonic pole and fetal heartbeat, not the absence of a gestational sac. If a yolk sac is visible, the gestational sac must also be visible. Generally, the fetal heartbeat can be detected around 45 days of pregnancy, although it may occur slightly earlier. This is based on the typical menstrual cycle pattern; if the cycle is longer, the heartbeat may be delayed accordingly.