What do you need to know about an ultrasound scan?

Ultrasound scanning is commonly used by different medical professionals to observe the internal structures of the human body.

An ultrasound scanning machine emits high-frequency sound waves directly at a specific internal part of the human body, using a small and hand-held probe, which directs its high-frequency sound waves specifically at the tissue being examined. It records all the reflected sound waves, or echoes, to create an image that can be clearly seen on a monitor that allows medical professionals to easily form a medical diagnosis of their patients. Ultrasound scanning is generally non-invasive and is commonly used to scan the human body’s abdominal and pelvic organs, its musculoskeletal structures, and vascular systems, and to check fetal development during pregnancy.

While ultrasound Gold Coast scanning is generally a non-invasive medical diagnostic procedure, some scanning procedures are performed using a specially-designed probe that can be inserted into the human body like the vagina for obstetric or pelvic examinations, the rectal cavity for specific prostate examinations, or the esophagus for specific cardiac examinations. However, medical professionals can also use an ultrasound scanning machine to closely monitor and guide invasive procedures like surgeries or a biopsy.

Ultrasound scanning: Its various uses.

Medical professionals commonly use ultrasound scanning for:

• Scanning the abdominal cavity– ultrasound medical diagnostics are used to investigate what causes pains, lumps, and any abnormalities in the abdominal areas. Abdominal ultrasound scanning may include the gallbladder, bile ducts, liver, pancreas, spleen, kidneys, and large blood vessels in the abdominal areas. However, abdominal organs that generally contain air, like the stomach and bowels, require special ultrasound scanning techniques as both cannot be scanned easily as the air inside of them prevents the transfer of the sound waves to and from the ultrasound machine.
• Pelvic-area scanning– is generally performed if a patient is suffering from pains in the pelvic areas due to abnormal menstrual periods, fibroids, cysts, and other abnormal health conditions associated with the female reproductive system
• Pregnancy scanning– ultrasound is commonly used to check for any possible fetal problems or abnormalities, to check the age and position of a fetus, and for the regular health monitoring of fetal growth and development with ultrasound scanning is now considered a routine medical procedure for pregnant women.

Other uses of ultrasound scanning.

Ultrasound scanning is also used for musculoskeletal scans to check the shoulders, hip, or elbows, breast tissue scanning to further determine the cause of any abnormality picked up through physical examinations or a mammogram, and even scanning the eyes to check their internal structures. Another special ultrasound scanning device, commonly called a Doppler ultrasound, is used to determine the speed and the direction of blood flow in certain areas of the human body like blood flows in the neck arteries and leg veins.

Medical issues and ultrasound scanning.

Some specific ultrasound scanning examinations require special preparations beforehand, like:

• Not eating any solid food a few hours before any upper abdominal ultrasound scanning procedure, and
• Having a full bladder is a requirement for very specific pelvic-area scanning.
• Medical professionals will generally have their patients undergo specific preparations before any specialized ultrasound scanning procedure.

The ultrasound scanning procedure.

For patients having an upper abdominal cavity ultrasound, they will be asked to lie down on an examination table or bed with the ultrasound technologist, called a sonographer, who will place some gel onto the patient’s skin to provide better scanning contact between the patient’s body and the ultrasound probe. 

The probe will then be placed above the specific areas of the abdomen to scan the specific organs or tissues to be examined. Two-dimensional, and sometimes three-dimensional, images are then displayed instantly on a monitor for diagnosis. Other ultrasound scanning procedures, however, may require slightly different procedures like a trans-vaginal scan, which requires inserting a special ultrasound probe into the vagina and even scanning through the front of the pelvis.

Directly after an ultrasound scan.

Depending on the type of ultrasound scanning examination required, an ultrasound scanning procedure generally takes around 20 to 40 minutes to complete with the results of the ultrasound scanning procedure usually sent to a patient’s specific doctor for a comprehensive diagnosis. 

With most ultrasound scanning procedures that are non-invasive and do not involve the use of ionizing radiation like x-rays, it is considered safe and is regularly used to check pregnant women and their babies. Ultrasound scanning procedures should not cause a patient much pain, if any, and do not normally require any recovery time after a procedure, most patients can easily go about their normal lives once they have completed their ultrasound examination.

The benefits and risks of medical ultrasound scanning procedures.

Its benefits.

• The majority of ultrasound scanning procedures performed are noninvasive with no needles or injections required before or after a scanning procedure.
• While some ultrasound scanning procedures may become uncomfortable, they should not be painful.
• Ultrasound scanning technologies are now widely available, are easy to use, and are less expensive than other medical diagnostic imaging methods.
• Ultrasound scanning equipment does not use radiation to form images of the human body making it safe to even regularly use on pregnant women and unborn babies.
• Ultrasound provides clearer and more in-depth images of internal soft tissues that generally do not show up clearly on x-ray images.
• Ultrasound scanning procedures provide medical professionals with real-time imaging which makes it highly ideal for guiding minimally invasive diagnostic procedures like needle biopsies and fluid aspiration.

Its risks.

Standard ultrasound scanning procedures are generally accepted by the medical community to have no known harmful effects on humans.

The commonly accepted limitations of ultrasound scanning procedures.

Ultrasound waves are easily disrupted by any air or gas inside the human body which makes ultrasound diagnostic scanning not an ideal diagnostic imaging technique for air-filled organs like the bowels or stomach. It is also not useful for imaging air-filled lungs but can be used to detect any possible fluid around or inside the lungs. 

An ultrasound machine also cannot penetrate dense bone but can be used for imaging bone fractures or bone infections. Whenever ultrasound scanning is determined to be limited for certain diagnostic procedures medical professionals typically use other imaging methods in conjunction with ultrasound to better image the internal organs and structures of a patient’s body.