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Not always. Many fetal medicine appointments are booked directly by the patient, although most come through a referral from the treating obstetrician. A referral letter is still worth obtaining where possible, because it states the clinical question and means the specialist starts with the relevant background rather than reconstructing it from scratch.

Usually within days rather than weeks, because several assessments in pregnancy are time-sensitive. The nuchal translucency window closes at 13 weeks 6 days, the anomaly scan is best between 18 and 22 weeks, and diagnostic tests have their own windows. When booking, say which scan raised the question and how many weeks pregnant you are, so the appointment can be given the right priority.

Bring the paperwork, not just the history. That means all previous scan reports and images, blood test and screening results, a current list of medicines with doses, records of any long-term medical condition, notes from previous pregnancies, and the dating scan report or date of last menstrual period. Bringing the actual reports rather than describing them from memory makes a real difference to the assessment.

Longer than most people expect. A detailed anomaly scan usually takes 30 to 45 minutes and a fetal echocardiogram 30 to 60 minutes, and either can run longer if the baby is lying awkwardly. Allowing for registration, the scan itself and a discussion of the findings afterwards, it is sensible to keep two hours free rather than booking something immediately afterwards.

In most cases yes, and it is usually a good idea, particularly for a detailed scan where findings may be discussed. Policies vary between centres on how many people can be in the room and whether children are allowed, so it is worth confirming when booking. A second person listening often remembers details that are easy to miss in the moment.

Many ultrasound reports are issued the same day, often within an hour or two of the scan. Laboratory results follow their own timelines: rapid chromosome results from a diagnostic test take around three working days, while full analysis or testing for a specific genetic condition generally takes about two weeks. Ask at the time of booking when to expect each result and how it will be communicated.

No. Under the Pre-Conception and Pre-Natal Diagnostic Techniques Act, 1994, no person conducting a prenatal procedure may communicate the sex of the fetus to the pregnant woman or her relatives by words, signs or any other method. Every registered ultrasound centre in India is bound by this, and the prohibition applies regardless of who asks or why.

Contact the centre as early as possible and say which scan it is, because some appointments cannot simply be moved. A nuchal translucency scan has a hard cut-off at 13 weeks 6 days, and missing it means switching to a different screening pathway rather than rebooking the same test. Scans that are less time-critical can usually be moved without consequence.