U2 Check-Up: 3-10 Days After Birth

The U2 is the next check-up, and happens soon after birth to make sure that your baby is doing well. The right time for this is three to ten days after birth. If you gave birth in the hospital, the U2 usually simply takes place there. If you had an outpatient birth, a home birth, or a birth in a birth center, you must make your own appointment for the U2 check-up with paediatrician. Because doctors' offices are often full, it's best to call them soon after the birth to make an appointment. At the U2 check-up, your baby will be thoroughly examined from head to toe once again. The aim is to recognise and treat any possible birth defects or congenital diseases as early as possible. Your doctor will also advise you on how best to feed your baby.

Your doctor will listen to your heart, lungs and intestines. Your baby's height, weight and head circumference will also be measured. Also, your doctor will check your baby’s skin to detect possible jaundice. The baby's eyes and ears, external sex organs, muscles and nerves are also examined. In addition, your baby will receive tests for critical congenital heart defects, for the metabolic disease cystic fibrosis, and a newborn hearing test. If these examinations have not already been done within the first few days after birth, they should be carried out at the U2 check-up. The U2 check-up also includes what are known in Germany as ‘extended newborn screenings’. This involves testing your baby's blood for various hormonal and metabolic disorders. This screening is voluntary. It will only be done if you agree to it.

Newborn screenings are used to detect congenital metabolic disorders as early as possible. To do this, the doctor will draw a little blood from your baby. If you're worried about your baby being hurt in the process, you can rest easy. It’s just a quick prick, usually in the heel, and only a few drops of blood are taken. The blood is then tested in the lab for several diseases and disorders. For example, hypothyroidism, a metabolic vitamin disorder called biotinidase deficiency, and fatty acid utilisation disorders such as LCHAD deficiency, MCAD deficiency, and carnitine metabolic defects. Fortunately, these diseases are all relatively rare. But if they are present, they can have serious or even life-threatening consequences for your child. The good news is that they are fairly easy to treat if you catch them early.

Your child should have already been given vitamin K at the U1 check-up as a precautionary measure to protect against brain haemorrhages. Your baby will receive vitamin K again at the U2 check-up. In addition, your paediatrician will also take this opportunity to discuss why your baby should also receive vitamin D and fluoride.

Vitamin D is important for healthy bone formation. In adults, the body can produce much of the vitamin D it needs on its own. This requires that they get enough sunlight through their skin. Babies, however, are not supposed to get too much sun for the first one to two years, and mother's milk usually contains too little vitamin D. Therefore, there is a risk of babies developing rickets. This disease causes skeletal malformation due to the bones being too soft. To prevent this, paediatricians advise that children receive a daily vitamin D tablet from the second week of life onwards.

Fluoride is a trace element that protects tooth enamel. It makes the outer layer of the tooth more resistant to the acids of cavity-causing bacteria. Doctors therefore recommend giving babies fluoride as a preventive measure even before they begin teething. Fluoride is often administered in combination with vitamin D.

If certain hip problems occur frequently in your family, your doctor can perform an ultrasound examination of your baby's hip joints at the U2. This is important for detecting possible problems with the position of your baby’s hips in good time. Then, as a rule, they can be easily treated. This will save your child from serious, lifelong problems later on. Without evidence of a hereditary predisposition to hip problems, ultrasound examinations of the hip joints do not take place until the U3 check-up.