The Nub Theory
"I've waited 12 weeks already, how much more?"
- Very impatient mama who needs to know more!
What is the Nub theory?
The basics of this theory are simple and straight forward (no pun intended), it's all about the angle of the genital tubercle. The male nub is usually angled upwards 30 degrees or more in relation to the spine, while female nub is either parallel or less than 30 degree from the spine. Several studies have been conducted and have found that, in controlled settings, nub theory ranges between 98% and 100% in accuracy. That is great odds for knowing your little one's gender before your doctor can confirm it!
For more information, here are a couple of the most recent studies conducted:
Ultrasound evaluation of fetal gender at 12–14 weeks
Fetal gender assignment by first‐trimester ultrasound
Want to read your own scan?
What is the nub on a baby scan? Both male and female start forming their genitalia in the very early weeks after conception, but it isn’t until 11-12 weeks that the differences can be seen. Although outward genitalia isn't fully formed until after 16 weeks, the angle of the genital tubercle can be seen from 11 to 15 weeks to determine gender. There are two main struggles when trying to read your own ultrasound. Perhaps the trickiest part of reading your own ultrasound is being able to locate the nub. It is usually right under the legs, but because every image is different and babies like to move around during ultrasounds, it takes an expert eye to pinpoint it for sure. The second struggle is seeing more than just the basic angle, as at 11 and 12 weeks the male nub might still be parallel, but with an expert eye the scrotum can began to be seen.
Nub Theory pictures
How read your own scan?
In order to be able to make a gender prediction the ultrasound must display a profile view of the baby, and the nub must be visible, this can be a challenge because babies move and good profile views are hard to get. If you do achieve this image, here are the steps for nub method:
-Find the spine. The angle of the spine serves as a baseline to compare with the angle on the nub, which is our next step.
-Find the nub. It should be a defined white line along where the legs of the baby should be.
-Find the angle. Comparing the direction of the spine with nub, see if the angle is more or less than 30 degrees.
As mentioned above, in addition to the angle there are other factors that also need to be taken into consideration. Some believe that if a nub has some forking on the tip it is a male nub. Baby Gender Pros does not believe this to be true as we have seen make forked female nubs, however it is a marker that we look at closely. Shadowing above the nub or stacking are also markers that can be deciding factors towards our prediction.
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Both Ramzi and Nub were correct! I’m having a baby girl!🎀
Was told twice my scan photo looked like a boy, confirmed ultrasound shows I’m having a girl 🙂 although wasn’t accurate for me it was still good fun!
Everyone said boy and I was surprised when you told us girl, but you were right!!! You really do know how to read Nubs! Thank you!
I was skeptical but you said girl with Ramzi and nub and you were correct! Will definitely use for my next baby!
Results were right for me and i couldnt be happier.
Insent my pics in and results came back BOY. It was confirmed that baby is in fact a boy. This is our first boy and we’re so excited to meet him!
I asked on the facebook groups and everyone else said boy! You guys are the only ones that got it right! Thank you for predicting my little girl!!
This was fun! I sent my 12 week ultrasounds and was told 98% boy and today at 16 weeks it's a boy! I will (hopefully) use this again! thank you!
You were correct it's a girl! We are over the moon excited! Thank you!
Nub theory was correct for us! At 11 weeks you saw it would be a girl and you were right!
Every other "expert" on Facebook was saying it was a girl because the nub looked flat at 12.5 weeks, but you guys showed me the developing scrotum and were confident it would be a boy and you were right!
It's a Boy! Thank you so much for keeping us excited!
I really wanted it to be a boy but your girl predictions helped me mentally prepare for the opposite. NIPT today confirmed it is a girl. Thank you for helping me bond with her from so early on.
I sent my son's ultrasound and my nephew's ultrasounds to see if you got them right and you did! Just found out today that your girl prediction for this pregnancy is also correct!
After three boys we finally get our girl! Thank you for keeping my excitement alive even when I was too scared to get excited yet!
As a first time mom I was so anxious to know the gender ASAP! So fun to be able to get a prediction the moment we got out of the first ultrasound appointment. Thank you!
I didn't want to believe it but you were right! We are having a boy!
Thank you for your predictions! You were right for my sister, my neighbor and me! Our rainbow baby is a boy and we couldn't be happier. Keep it up!
