What is it used for? of Ultrasound scan

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Ultrasound scanning is used widely for checking on pregnant mothers and their unborn babies. Most pregnant women are screened by ultrasound at around the 16th to 20th week of pregnancy.

The screening process can:

Detect twins or other multiple pregnancies;
Check that the baby is the right size for the stage of pregnancy;
Check that there are no problems with the baby's development like anencephaly (poor brain development), Spina bifida (lack of bone covering parts of the spinal chord), cleft lip / palate;
Measure the rates of blood flow through the baby's heart;
Detect some types of congenital heart disease;
Display the position of the afterbirth (placenta) so that any problems arising from its incorrect positioning can be safely managed;
Enable staff to carry out other types of tests such as amniocentesis, foetal blood sampling and chronic villus sampling;
In conjunction with small tubular instruments called foetal endoscopes or foetoscopes, enable surgeons to carry out procedures while the foetus is in the womb (for example, correcting a blocked urinary tract that is causing a swollen bladder);
Enable parent(s) to 'see' their unborn child.

A week-by-week guide to your pregnancy

Ultrasound scanning is also useful for examining soft tissue and fluid filled organs in the body such as the bladder and gallbladder, which do not show up clearly on X-rays. It can detect abnormalities such as tumours.

Ultrasound waves cannot easily pass through bone or gas, so it is of less use for some parts of the body. For example, those parts of the body surrounded by bone like the brain and spinal cord. The lungs and the intestines are also not suitable for ultrasound examination.

Pulses of ultrasound are also sometimes used as a treatment for conditions such as rheumatoid arthritis and to heal fractures and wounds.