Pregnancy Calculator

Calculating Your Baby's Birth Date

A pregnancy calculator is a tool used to estimate the date your baby will arrive. The accuracy of the estimated date will depend largely on the accuracy of the information you have supplied for the tool. This is not encouraged as a substitute for medical diagnosis though and you still need professional confirmation. However, using a pregnancy due date calculator could be a fun way to get a general idea on when you baby will arrive.

Most pregnant women would like to know ahead when their baby will arrive to be able to prepare for the baby's things, aside from preparing emotionally and mentally with a new addition to the family. Moreover, this is another exciting way to enjoy your pregnancy regardless of whether you guessed the right date or not.

How To Use A Pregnancy Calculator

A pregnancy due date calculator is similar to those used by doctors to estimate when a mother is due to give birth. There are two factors used to determine this: the date of the last menstruation period, or the date of the conception.

Using your last menstrual period is considered the easier option and more accurate among these two factors used to calculate due date with the pregnancy calculator. With this information, doctors will be able to predict when you are due even with the lack of ultrasound device. When you have determined the last day of your period, simply add 280 days to determine your due date. However, you need to verify it with your doctor so you can undergo a series of physical exam and properly determine if you have the right due date, or if it comes earlier or later.

If you don't know the actual date of your last menstrual period, then you can use the date of your conception. Unlike on your last menstrual date, you must add 266 days to your date of conception to arrive at your due date. Therefore, women are advised to take note of their cycle, as well as dates where you had sexual contact. As long as you have accurate dates, then this method will prove to be quite effective.

Accuracy of the Calculator

Despite the advancements of technology used today, there is still room for error. In the case of pregnancy due date calculator, the accuracy of the tool depends on the accuracy of the information that is supplied on the tool. However, it is largely an estimate - to give you a time frame on the date of birth for the child.

From previous results done on the due date calculator, 80% of those estimated dates are within 10 days of the actual due date or delivery of the baby. Hence, when we talk about accuracy, there is still a large room for improvement. Moreover, it is 10 days earlier or later than the actual delivery date, which totals to 20 days. This 20-day difference is for 80% of all pregnancies, therefore there are 20% other pregnancies who are beyond the estimated due date.

You have to remember that there are several variables that are involved in this process. What is more difficult is that most of these variables cannot be measured accurately, and so you cannot expect this tool to be a 100% accurate at all times.

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Understanding Pregnancy Calculator Recommended Resources:

Health Link - Medical College of Wisconsin

Stanford School of Medicine