Ultrasound Transducers and Pregnancy
How ultrasound transducers are used in pregnancy and gynecology.
Gender Predictor Ultrasounds
Ultrasound transducers are part of the ultrasound machine and is used to help see the gender of the fetus at the 20 week ultrasound.
Gynecology Ultrasounds
Non pregnant ultrasounds are performed to visualize the pelvic organs. There are 2 ultrasound transducers that can be used for pelvic ultrasounds. Transvaginal transducers are generally used for better quality imaging and do not require the patient to have a full bladder.
Transabdominal ultrasounds can also be performed but these types of pelvic ultrasounds are not optimal and they do require the patient to have a full bladder.
3d Ultrasounds in Pregnancy
These 3d ultrasounds are best recommended between 28 and 32 weeks gestation. This is just an added ultrasound transducer to most ultrasound machines.
Key Component of an Ultrasound Machine
Ultrasound transducers are a key component to any diagnostic ultrasound imaging machine. It is the hand held component that the ultrasound technologist uses to receive the image from the body area being scanned.
Different Types of Ultrasound Transducers
There are many different ultrasound transducers used in medical imaging depending on the thickness or depth of the area being scanned.
The higher the ultrasound frequency, the thinner the depth to be imaged. The deeper the area of the body to be imaged, the lower the ultrasound frequency.in order to have better penetration of deeper tissues, a lower frequency of (3–5 MHz) is used.
So basically, if an ultrasound technologist were to image a thyroid, a higher frequency transducer would be used such as a (7-10 MHZ) since the thyroid is not very deep.
If an ultrasound technologist were to scan a pregnant patient, a lower frequency ultrasound transducer would be used since the pregnancy is deeper into the body.
In addition to ultrasound transducers that images the organs from on top of the skin, there are other ultrasound transducers that are used internally to image the female pelvic organs and mens prostates.
2D (2 Dimensional) ultrasound is typically used for diagnostic purposes. 3D (3 Dimensional) ultrasound is used to see tissue in 3 dimension and is a different transducer.
When scanning a fetus, mostly a 2D ultrasound is performed as the diagnostic tool. 3D ultrasound is good for imaging the outer tissue of the fetus, meaning that the fetus should be scanned in 3D between 28 – 34 weeks gestation since the fetus now has enough skin to visualize features.
Ultrasound transducers are specific to certain types and makes of ultrasound machines. There are many popular makers of ultrasound machines and transducers, the larger companies are Philips, GE and Acuson.
Ultrasound is used to scan many different areas of the body including:
- pregnancy ultrasounds
- pelvic ultrasounds
- sonohystagrams
- amniocentesis
- CVS (chorionic villi sampling)
- abdominal
- thyroid
- echo cardiogram
- prostate
- muscular
- vascular
- veterinary
- As time goes on and advances are made in ultrasound, there are more and more uses for ultrasounds.
Different shapes and sizes of ultrasound transducers are being created to accommodate different types of imaging.
Having the right ultrasound transducer is what will make the imaging of the body area optimal.
Who is the Best Person to Perform Your Ultrasound Exam
A diagnostic ultrasound technologist will know which ultrasound transducer to use for the area being scanned.
If this is a vaginal (internal transvaginal ultrasound), realize that this ultrasound should not hurt and only feel strange or weird. This type of ultrasound is performed in looking at the uterus, the ovaries and the around them to check for abnormal masses or fluid in the pelvis.
What is called the transvaginal ultrasound probe, is also used for the imaging of prostates.