Do you wonder, I've been told boy but there is 3 lines?
everyone is telling me my scan is wrong because it shows 3 lines?!
Its a very common misconception that only girls image with 3 lines in their potty shots or gender scans. I want to take the time to explain that is ABSOLUTELY NOT TRUE,
BOTH genders can image with three lines!! after all ultrasounds are made up of sound waves (horizontal lines) depending on the orientation baby lays, gender images as horizontal lines
The biggest miscommunication is between doctors and their patients during the gender scan And this has then spread because we trust them right? we should but this information is not correct. I personally specialise in gender from side shots and potty. both genital parts need to image to give certainty of gender, so for girls this would be labia and clitoris, (sometimes just labia is ok depending on the angle and age of baby, for a boy penis AND scrotum need to image! depending on the lie penis can image as round or a line, with penis either as lines, fuller look or a line above.. (cord images completely different to genitals)
recap.
Why do the genitals image as lines?
because ultrasound images as lines!
Anything rounded can image with lines meaning labia, clitoris and even the head of the penis can image as lines. Here is an example of how both genders can image as 3 lines
So if both genders can image as 3 lines, how do you tell them apart?
for someone experienced, its easy to tell strait away, the shape gives it away, from an inexperienced eye it can be tricky,
This is were the femur comes into play!! If the baby is a boy the genitals will protrude further down the femur and in most cases the middle line is longer than the 2 on the sides. If the 3 lines are even with the end of femur and in some cases the middle line is inverted, (clitoris) baby is most likely a girl!! but scrotum need to image to give full clarity.
Another identifier could possibly be the bladder within the potty shot. The bladder is more likely to be seen in a boys potty shot due to their low bladder position and their genitals being on top of their lower abdomen. The bladder images as a black circle under the penis and scrotum and to an untrained eye may look like the anus. It cannot always be seen in boys potty shots but will never normally image in a girls due to their genitals being in front of the bladder from that view. Examples:
Both genders can also image as "3 dots". If the dots are all in a row, the baby is most likely a girl and what is being seen is labia and clitoris. If one dot images on top of the other 2 baby is most likely a boy and top dot is penis and the two underneath are testes.
This is a BABY BOY: Red arrow indicating penis and yellow arrows indicating testes.
Both (above and below) images show boy genitals imaging as 3 dots that protrude down the femur. As seen in the image below, 3 dots are visible, indicating penis & testes, bladder is shown (black circle under genitals). This baby is also a BOY!
This is a BABY GIRL:
In the image above the 3 dots are all in a row indicating labia and clitoris! In the image below is another baby girl imaging with 3 dots. Both images showing girl genitals even with the end of the femur.
Hopefully this clears up some of the misunderstanding about the 3 lines statement!
If you would like us to review your scan please submit your images to me through the website via the gender reassurance reading
below is a confirmed girl
