Ultrasound For Prenatal Care
While ultrasound is a time-tested diagnostic method used to evaluate and diagnose a wide range of conditions, scanning the belly of a pregnant person may be your initial and strongest association with this common test. In fact, ultrasound is a foundational part of prenatal care, and here we will get into some of the ways that it is used to help inform health care providers and patients alike.
What Is Ultrasound?
Ultrasound is a way for health care providers to see and assess what is happening inside the body without invasive techniques. The process itself is painless and well-tolerated by pregnant patients. An ultrasonographer–the technician who performs the ultrasound–applies a warmed, water-based gel to the area of the body to be analyzed, and then uses the transducer (scanner) to apply sound waves to the body. These show the position and state of internal tissues and structures, offering real-time images on a video display terminal. The resulting images can also be printed for records and for the patient directly.
Ultrasounds are most often done on the outside of the body. But for some conditions, they are done internally. Your personal doctor will be able to offer more detail on the specifics of your procedure. An ultrasound does not cause side effects and can typically give a doctor the information they need without painful, complicated, or invasive techniques.
How Ultrasound for Prenatal Care Works
Ultrasound for prenatal care–also sometimes called pregnancy ultrasound, obstetric ultrasound, or obstetric sonography–has the main goal of visualizing the baby’s shape and position and can be done during the first, second, and third trimesters of pregnancy. It can also be used to track and diagnose suspected conditions in the fetus. The knowledge gained during an ultrasound helps you and your doctor to make decisions regarding your and your baby’s health. That said, in general, your prenatal ultrasounds offer assurance of growth and development, enable you to know the gender of your baby, and offer an exciting opportunity to see your baby’s face, hands, feet, and more, and also watch them move.
Other things that an ultrasound can achieve are to:
- Confirm the expected delivery date
- Detect ectopic pregnancies
- Check for more than one fetus
- Record fetal heartbeat/breathing movements
- Check the amount of amniotic fluid
- Check the position of the placenta
Ultrasound testing should last anywhere from 20 minutes to an hour, depending on what your health care provider is looking for. To prepare for a prenatal ultrasound, your doctor may ask you to drink lots of fluids or not use the restroom for a time before the test. After changing into a gown and lying down on a table in a darkened room (to allow for better visuals of the images) the sonographer will begin the test.
It is recommended for all ultrasound patients to wear loose, comfortable clothing and to refrain from wearing jewelry. Feel free to contact Advanced Diagnostics prior to your procedure if you have any questions about necessary preparations.
Once the ultrasound is done, one of our board-certified radiologists will interpret the results and send their interpretation to your physician.
Ultrasound for Prenatal Care In Cleveland and Beachwood, Ohio
If you are a patient in the Cleveland or Beachwood, Ohio area and your doctor has prescribed an ultrasound as part of your prenatal care and assessment, Advantage Diagnostics is here to help. We are proud to offer professional ultrasound services along with a team of expert radiologists who can quickly and accurately interpret your test results. Contact us today to request or submit a patient referral form and to learn more about our suite of services. Congratulations on being a parent, and we look forward to helping you during your pregnancy milestones!