14 Weeks
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At 14 weeks of pregnancy, ultrasonography can more easily distinguish the external sex organs [1]. You may be able to find out the biological sex of your fetus at your next ultrasound appointment if desired. The prostate gland is developing in male fetuses, and the ovaries are moving into position in female fetuses [2].
The fetus can now produce hormones with its functional thyroid gland [2]. Production of red blood cells has decreased in the liver and started in the spleen [1].
The fetus’s neck is more well-defined, and its palate (the roof of the mouth) is forming [1,2]. By the end of this week, ossification (the process of bone replacing skeletal cartilage) is apparent in the skull [1].
References:
1. Moore KL, Persaud TVN, Torchia MG. The Developing Human: Clinically Oriented Embryology. Philadelphia: Elsevier; 2016.
2. Harms R, Wick M, editors. Mayo Clinic Guide to a Healthy Pregnancy. Boston: Da Capo Press; 2011.
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Produced and written by: Samantha Lattof, PhD MSc
Medically reviewed by: Ayodeji Olelakan Abere, MD MBA MHA
Animation by: SciePro / Pond5
Music by: audiomarket / Pond5
Narration by: Ava / Wellsaid