An
ultrasound image is generated by a machine that sends high
frequency sound waves through the body tissues and then
receives the returning echoes.
These echoes are processed by a computer and displayed as an anatomical image
on a screen in real time. Medical ultrasound (also called sonography) does
not use ionising x-ray radiation and has no known adverse side effects.
The operator of the equipment is called a sonographer. , a sonographer is not
always a medical doctor, but is often a radiographer trained in human anatomy,
physiology, and pathology applied to ultrasound imaging. They will usually
have passed post graduate exams in the field of ultrasound.
Ultasound
itself is a very useful tool in the field of medical imaging.
The quality of Ultrasound images has improved consistently
since its introduction in the early 1970s. This modality
is now used throughout the body for imaging almost every
soft tissue area including the abdominal organs, the vascular
system, the musculo-skeletal system and, of course, the
developing foetus. (Obstetric Ultrasound)
Ultrasound
is a very sensitive tool in the early confirmation of pregnancy
at least as effective as urine tests and certainly more
accurate.
At four to five weeks after the last menstrual period (LMP) a tiny gestational
sac appears in the uterus. The embryo at this time is still too small to be
detected.
By six weeks the embryo has grown enough to be visible on the scans. By the
use of real-time ultrasound it can be seen moving in the gestational sac. At
seven weeks a beating heart can be detected.
For
further details about our Ultrasound scanning facilities,
please click
here.
