Blood type and Rh factor 

A blood test is generally conducted to check your blood type as well as the Rh (or rhesus) factor. There are 4 blood types, namely; A, B, AB, O. The Rh factor is a protein present on the surface of red blood cells. You would be Rh positive if your blood has the protein and Rh negative, if not.

Blood Pressure

At each prenatal visit at the doctor’s clinic, your blood pressure will be checked. Blood pressure generally drops in the first few months of pregnancy and later, comes back to normal baseline.

1. If your blood pressure is high, it should be regularly monitored throughout pregnancy by your healthcare provider.
2. If your blood pressure is normal but accelerates at times (due to pregnancy), it would still need to be monitored regularly.

Note: Regular monitoring is important as high blood pressure during pregnancy can affect your liver and kidney, and also lead to preeclampsia.

Complete Blood Count (CBC)

This blood test measures different cells that make up your blood including red blood cells, white blood cells, and platelets. A CBC can help to check for a variety of health issues such as anaemia, clotting disorders and infections. 

Other Blood Tests

Several other blood tests will be done to ensure that you do not have certain conditions that could harm you or your baby, in any way. These would range from diabetes and thyroid tests to infections like hepatitis-B and STDs- HIV or syphilis, etc. You could also be tested for thalassemia.

Urinalysis

Along with a blood pressure test, a urinalysis will be a part of most of your prenatal visits. Your first prenatal exam will include this common test that can assess many different factors with a sample of your urine, including the following: 

• Red blood cells - to check for a urinary tract disease

• White blood cells - to check for a urinary tract infection (UTI)

• Glucose - to check if there are signs of diabetes mellitus

• Protein - to check for preeclampsia

Dating scan

This is known as the Level 1 ultrasound scan and carried out at around 12 weeks of pregnancy. It is used to work out how long you have been pregnant and your due date. Your doctor will also use the scan to check that your baby is growing in the right place – that is, in the uterus or outside the uterus (an ectopic pregnancy). And if there is more than one baby in the womb.

Nuchal Translucency and Blood Test

This combined screening test (blood test and a Nuchal Translucency or NT scan) is done to check if your baby is under risk of birth defects such as Down syndrome and Edward's syndrome. The blood test checks for levels of pregnancy-associated plasma protein-A (PAPP-A) and the hormone Human Chorionic Gonadotropin.

The NT scan checks for extra fluid behind your baby’s neck, which babies with chromosomal abnormalities usually have. It is not a definitive test - it just measures whether or not your baby is high risk or low risk for these conditions.

However, your doctor may prescribe a follow-up with a chorionic villus sampling (CVS) or amniocentesis for a more accurate result. These are optional tests with side effects, so do speak to your doctor and make an informed decision.

Note: Some of the above mentioned tests are periodically repeated to monitor health parameters throughout pregnancy.