The gestational age calculator is an online pregnancy calculator that can help you determine the present age of your pregnancy. You only need to put a few values in our calculator to know how far you are in your pregnancy. Following the article, you will not only be able to learn about gestational age but also the importance of gestational age in pregnancy.
What is gestational age?
Gestational age is the generalized term used in pregnancy to define the age of the pregnancy period. In simple words, gestational age tells us about the period of the fetus staying in the mother’s uterus. This period is usually measured in the weeks. The only input you need to know is the first day of the last menstrual period. Gestational age is the difference of the weeks between the current date and the first day of the last menstrual period.
There are several other methods to determine the gestational age. You can use the estimated due date to find out the gestational age. In case, you don’t know the estimated due date, you can use our due date calculator or IVF calculator to determine the estimated due date of your pregnancy.
Why is it important to calculate gestational age?
Gestational age is important to determine the overall health of your baby. You can determine multiple health factors just by knowing the gestational age. Once you know about the gestational age, you can use it to know the following factors.
- Prenatal development
- Schedule prenatal care
- Determine the outcomes of prenatal tests
- Classify childbirth
- Determine pregnancy weight gain
- Determine the health risks in infants
How can we calculate the gestational age?
Multiple gestational age calculators use different input values to determine the gestational age. The commonest methods to determine the gestational age include:
- Find out the starting date of your last menstrual period before conceiving. Finding the difference between the current date and the first day of your last menstrual period tells us about the gestational age.
- Using ultrasonography can also help find the details related to the gestational age. Ultrasounds provide the crown-rump length and various other findings of the baby to determine the gestational age. It is the most common practice among doctors to know about the gestational age.
- In the case of in vitro fertilization, where you already know about the exact date of the fertilization, count the number of days from the start of pregnancy and add 14 days. The result will tell you about the gestational age.
- Using the due date is also common to find out the gestational age. For this, you need to follow these calculations.
Estimated due date – 280 days = date of last menstrual period
Current date – date of last menstrual period = gestational age
How to use a gestational age calculator?
To use a gestational age calculator, you only need to know about the first date of your last menstrual period. Let’s suppose, the starting date of the last menstrual period is 20th January 2024. Today’s the 27th of July 2024. The difference between these two dates is about 27 weeks. Your gestational age is about 27 weeks.
Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs)
Q1: What is the most common parameter to determine gestational age?
The most common parameter to measure gestational age is in weeks. A normal pregnancy lasts about 40 weeks or 280 days.
Q2: What is the accurate method to determine gestational age?
You can use our online gestational age calculator to determine the gestational age. Besides this, doctors usually prefer to go for ultrasonography to accurately determine the gestational age by different findings visible on the ultrasound.