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What Were Ultrasounds Used For?

Ultrasound technology emits high-frequency sound waves to produce images of the insides of the body. Unlike X-rays, ultrasound does not emit any kind of radiation. Ultrasounds are used to help understand what is causing someone pain and discomfort as well as for a wide variety of medical procedures.

  1. Heart and Arteries Exams

    • Unlike a regular ultrasound, which only shows an image of your arteries, a Doppler ultrasound is used to show your blood flow. In order to do so, the Doppler ultrasound is placed on the area of concern and emits frequencies. Throughout the procedure, the Doppler ultrasound measures the changes in its frequency, thus estimating how fast the blood is flowing. This helps your doctor diagnose any possible complications such as blood clots, clogged arteries, aneurysms, heart defects and other serious conditions. There are three types of Doppler ultrasounds: color, power and spectral.

    Pregnancy exams

    • A pregnant woman is encouraged to undergo ultrasound exams in order to ensure the health of the fetus. After the ultrasound exam is complete, the mother receives the sonogram, or the images of the fetus and the placenta. There are seven types of ultrasounds available including standard, advanced, transvaginal, Doppler, 3-D, 4-D and fetal echocardiography. Transvaginal scans are conducted in the beginning stages of pregnancy and involve inserting a probe inside the vaginal canal in order to generate images. Standard ultrasound generates 2-D images of the fetus while 3-D and 4-D are used to create realistic images. If a heart condition is suspected, your doctor may use the Doppler or fetal echocardiography.

    Abdominal exams

    • Ultrasounds are also used to identify what is causing someone pain and discomfort in a particular part of the body. Abdominal ultrasound exams identify problems found in the appendix, liver, spleen, pancreas, kidneys, bladder and other organs. A pelvic ultrasound exam helps a gynecologist identify any problems in a female's reproductive organs, such as the ovaries, fallopian tubes and uterus, and checks for cysts or fibroids.

    Breast Exams

    • Mammograms help physicians identify any abnormal growths in breast tissue. Should the results show a possible abnormal growth, an ultrasound-guided biopsy may be used in order to help guide a needle to the site of the abnormal growth. A doctor may use an ultrasound machine in order to spot the abnormal growth, and then will insert a biopsy needle to remove some of the growth for testing. The ultrasound machine will help the doctor see the biopsy needle work its way to the abnormal growth in real-time.

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