The Multiple Values of Diagnostic Ultrasound Scanning

Diagnostic ultrasound is a scan used to demonstrate internal body structures. It works by emitting high-frequency sound waves, directed at the tissue being examined, and recording the reflected sound or in professional terms, echoes to produce an analytic 2-, 3- or 4-dimensional image.

The diagnostic ultrasound scan is non-invasive and some of the standard reasons for ultrasound scanning include investigations of the abdominal and pelvic organs, musculoskeletal and vascular systems and to check fetal development during pregnancy.

The diagnostic ultrasound scan emits high-frequency sound waves, directed at the internal body part being examined. The reflected sounds (echoes) are recorded to generate an image that can be viewed on a monitor. The sound waves are emitted and received from a small, hand-held diagnostic ultrasound part probe. As the high frequency sound cannot be detected by the human ear, it is called ultrasound.

In general, a diagnostic ultrasound scan is a non-invasive procedure. However, some diagnostic ultrasound scans are done with a special probe that is inserted into the vagina (for special obstetric or pelvic examinations), the rectum (for special prostate examinations) or the esophagus (for to examine the heart). In addition, diagnostic ultrasound scanning may be used to monitor and guide invasive procedures, including breast or thyroid biopsy procedures.

There are many uses for diagnostic ultrasound including:

• Abdominal diagnostic ultrasound scan – may be used to investigate abdominal pain, nausea, vomiting, abnormal sounds and lumps. Structures that may be examined include the gallbladder, bile ducts, liver, pancreas, spleen, kidneys and large blood vessels. Structures that contain air (such as the stomach and bowels) can’t be examined easily by diagnostic ultrasound, because air prevents the transfer of sound waves produced by the scanner.
• Pelvic scan – may be performed if a woman is suffering pelvic pain or has abnormal periods, fibroids, cysts or other conditions associated with the female reproductive system.
• Pregnancy scan – used to check for fetal abnormalities (including growth abnormalities, Downs Syndrom or diseases such as spina bifida), check the age and position of the fetus, and monitor fetal growth and development. A diagnostic ultrasound scan during pregnancy is now considered routine in most parts of the world.
• Other uses of diagnostic ultrasound scan – musculoskeletal scans (to check regions like shoulder, hip and elbow), breast scans (for example, to further investigate an abnormality picked up by physical examination or mammogram) and a scan of the eye (to check its internal structures). A special type of diagnostic ultrasound scan, called a ‘Doppler ultrasound’, is sometimes used to detect the speed and direction of blood flow in certain regions of the body, including neck arteries and leg veins.

MedWOW, the multilingual global medical equipment platform, offers a a huge selection of thousands of both new and used diagnostic ultrasound scanners for sale from inventories all over the world. MedWOW currently offers diagnostic ultrasound scanners manufactured by Acoustic Imaging, Acuson, Agilent, Aloka, Alpinion, Ardent Sound, ARI, ATL, Biosound Esaote, BK Medical, Bruel & Kjaer, Carewell, Corometrics, Diasonics Vingmed, Dornier MedTech, Edan, EMP, Esaote, Fukuda Denshi, GE Healthcare, Hewlett Packard, Hitachi, Honda, Kontron Medical, Kranzbuehler, Kretz, Lead Medi Tech, Medison, Mindray, Mochida, and Zonare Medical Systems.

Not only that, if you are looking for diagnostic ultrasound parts, MedWOW can find almost any diagnostic ultrasound part in existence as they represent an inventory of almost 10,000 from manufacturers all over the world from 1990-present, so what you need is likely among their comprehensive listings.

If there is a particular diagnostic ultrasound part that you can’t find in MedWOW’s representative inventories, you can post a request or take advantage of any of MedWOW’s location services.

Be Safe When Using Diagnostic Ultrasound

Diagnostic ultrasound is a safe and secure method of examining the internal organs, while avoiding the use of radiation. Instead, high-frequency sound waves are generated and the echoes that result from their bouncing off soft tissue structures can be used to measure size, to detect structural abnormalities, to determine whether a lump is solid or fluid-filled or to monitor growth of a fetus during pregnancy.

One of the reasons diagnostic ultrasound is gaining in popular usage as an imaging technology is because it is very safe in comparison with other techniques, such as x-ray imaging. This doesn’t mean, however, that diagnostic ultrasound doesn’t have some hazards if improperly used. The danger of diagnostic ultrasound, if any, seems not so much to be from misuse but from overuse. As is the case with many other things ─ too much of a good thing is not a good idea!

The type of imaging that is utilized in diagnostic ultrasound is used much of the time to try to identify problems or to pinpoint potential problems. Diagnostic ultrasound is very commonly used to determine the sex of unborn babies and the term “diagnostic ultrasound” invokes images of fetal pictures and growing babies. But diagnostic ultrasound systems have many other features, including precision and delicacy when operating on eyes to emulsify cataracts to make way for lens implants. Diagnostic ultrasound is also used to explore and monitor the entire human physical organism. No matter what diagnostic ultrasound is being used for, there is one common rule – the safety of the patient comes first.

Even though diagnostic ultrasound is so universally used, there is still some debate and even controversy about whether it is completely safe. Diagnostic ultrasound studies on laboratory mice have shown some cellular effects, such as slowed cell division and increased cell death, shown to be linked with prolonged usage of diagnostic ultrasound.

A few other diagnostic ultrasound studies have found associations between large amounts of diagnostic ultrasound and decreased birth weight, although the majority of studies have found that there are no negative correlations associated with diagnostic ultrasound and that there are no ill effects from safe and more sensible usage.

In fact, The World Health Organization recognizes diagnostic ultrasound as generally safe and recommends its use. To quote them: “Diagnostic ultrasound is recognized as a safe, effective, and highly flexible imaging modality capable of providing clinically relevant information about most parts of the body in a rapid and cost-effective fashion.”

Some sources are far more confrontational about the entire diagnostic ultrasound issue than others. Many dismiss the claims that diagnostic ultrasound is dangerous as an overreaction with no research to back it up, while others assert that the information generally disclosed in the industry is not 100% truthful and thorough, and that there are indeed significant dangers associated with diagnostic ultrasound. Therefore, it is difficult to ascertain that it is 100% safe and should be used with caution.

A good rule of thumb seems to be that especially when concerning prenatal diagnostic ultrasound, it should only be undertaken when really necessary, and only by well- trained professionals. It has become very popular to use diagnostic ultrasound in order to simply take pictures of the unborn baby or determine whether it is a boy or a girl. This practice, and repeated diagnostic ultrasound when there are no problems that clearly need diagnosis or monitoring, should be discouraged. It is better to be on the safe side with this and any other medical procedure, even if there is only a small amount of doubt about the safety of diagnostic ultrasound.

Obstetric Ultrasound Scanners Explained

Obstetric ultrasound scanning is an ultrasound imaging method designed to be used to augment physical examinations in the course of prenatal care. There are a large variety of uses for obstetric ultrasound, and this procedure has become a routine part of prenatal care for many women, especially women throughout Europe and North America. It has become quite common for parents to request print-outs of the images of their growing infant and the technician frequently prints out pictures for them to see and explains the fetus’s configuration as seen on screen to the parents, during the course of the obstetric ultrasound scan.

In obstetric ultrasound imaging, high-frequency sound waves are bounced off the body to create an accurate image of the inside of the uterus. Very high frequency sound waves of between 3.5 to 7.0 megahertz (3.5 to 7 million cycles per second) are normally used for this purpose. This is achieved by using a transducer which emanates waves and generates an image based on the length of the response time and the changes in frequency. The obstetric ultrasound results created can be either a still or moving image, with advanced technology being implemented to create three-dimensional ultrasound images which provide even more specific details. The obstetric ultrasound image may be acquired by covering the woman’s abdomen in a conductive gel and running the transducer along the belly, or by inserting the transducer into the vaginal canal to get a clearer image, which is known as a transvaginal ultrasound. The resulting image gives a picture of the uterus and its contents, along with adjacent body structures. These measurements outline the foundation in the assessment of gestational age, size and growth in the fetus. A full bladder is often compulsory for the procedure when abdominal scanning is done in the early stages of pregnancy. There may be some discomfort from pressure on the full bladder.

There are a wide variety of uses for obstetric ultrasound. Obstetric ultrasound imaging is customarily used to evaluate a pregnancy. This may include determining how far along the pregnancy is and confirming that the fetus is developing normally. Movements such as fetal heart beat and abnormalities in the fetus can be appraised and measurements can be made accurately based on the images displayed on the monitor. An ultrasound can also be used specifically to check for fetal malformations or problems, including a detached placenta. If a mother comes with pregnancy complications indicating fetal distress, obstetric ultrasound may be used as a diagnostic tool to check on the status of the baby without having to use invasive techniques which could jeopardize the pregnancy.

As there are various obstetric applications, different types of obstetric ultrasound probes are required, depending on which is indicated. If an obstetric ultrasound scanner model has fixed probes, then it may only be suitable for a limited subset of applications. For this reason, it is common for ultrasound systems to have interchangeable probes, and they frequently have more than one probe connection socket for the different applications.