Ultrasounds 101: What Every Patient Needs To Know

When most individuals think of ultrasounds, they remember it is a method for determining a baby's gender before it is born and they forget ultrasounds actually have many other applications in the medical field. These convenient machines are one of the simplest ways of viewing anything inside a patient's body, and as such, they are used for a wide range of diagnostic techniques. Here are a few things every patient needs to learn before they take an ultrasound.

What Is General Ultrasound Imaging?

At the most basic level, ultrasounds are an imaging tool. The answer to "what is general ultrasound imaging?" is essentially that an ultrasound is a type of scan that creates a picture of the body's interior. When we start looking at ultrasounds more closely, we see an ultrasound is somewhat unique among imaging tools. Instead of using potentially dangerous radiation, it uses basic sound waves. A sonographer operates an ultrasound imaging machine. Once the sonographer uses the ultrasound to create an image of the patient, a specialist may be needed to interpret the images, which tend to look like like a black and white picture with very fuzzy boundaries. In some cases, a doctor may inject a contrast dye to make the image clearer. However, the average ultrasound picture is just a rough outline of all the organs in the body.

Continue to learn more about precisely how ultrasounds work.

How Does It Work?

Ultrasounds work to produce images through sound waves. The machine sends sound waves through the body, and whenever the waves encounter something, a tiny portion of them bounce back. When an object is dense, such as a stone in a gallbladder, a higher amount of sound waves will bounce back. This bouncing back or echoing is the key to understanding how ultrasounds work. A machine interprets the sound echoes to get a picture of the various densities of the objects that the ultrasound waves encounter. The machine that turns the sound echoes into an image depicts all of these separate densities as shades of gray. Machines have the option of transmitting sound waves at various speeds. A higher speed or frequency of ultrasound wave provides better resolution, but it cannot penetrate as deep into the body.

Continue to learn about the different types of ultrasounds.

Types Of Ultrasounds

Ultrasound machines are divided into types of ultrasounds based on the type of transducer used. Transducers are the wands that transmit the sound waves into a person's body, and ultrasound technicians may use different types depending on the use of the ultrasound. A standard transducer has a short, slightly flat shape, and is passed over the skin to create an ultrasound image. For more complicated procedures, other types may be used. The transvaginal ultrasound is one of the most common types of ultrasound. It is an elongated wand that can be inserted into the vagina to get a closer look at the uterus and ovaries. A transrectal wand is similar, but it is shaped to fit into the rectum and is very helpful for diagnosing prostate problems. In cases where the doctor needs a better look at the inside of a patient's torso, they may use a transesophageal ultrasound, which is inserted into the esophagus and allows the ultrasound equipment to get a closer look at the heart and other organs.

Continue to learn more about the various uses for ultrasounds.

Common Uses For Ultrasounds

Ultrasounds have an application whenever a doctor needs to get more information about what is happening beneath a patient's skin. Since the applications for ultrasounds are too many to list, we will stick to discussing the common uses for ultrasounds. Their primary use is diagnosing other health conditions. They can help doctors to identify issues in the heart, liver, gallbladder, uterus, kidneys, eyes, thyroid, spleen, and pancreas. Individuals can get conditions like pregnancy, cancer, joint injuries, and heart problems diagnosed through an ultrasound. Ultrasounds, of course, are not just used for diagnostics. Their ability to provide a real-time image lets them assist doctors while they are doing other tasks. For example, an ultrasound could guide a doctor to the right spot to perform a needle biopsy. In some medical conditions, like pregnancy or a healing injury, regular ultrasounds can be used to monitor the patient's progress.

Continue to examine both the benefits as well as the risks of ultrasounds.

Benefits And Risks

Ultrasounds are associated with both benefits and risks. The main benefit of ultrasound imaging is it uses sound waves to see inside the body, allowing doctors to view a patient's interior without having to resort to methods that involve exposing the patient to potentially dangerous radiation. In general, there are not any medical risks associated with ultrasounds, according to thousands of studies. Some research suggests when ultrasounds are performed on fetuses, there is a slightly higher chance of the child being left-handed, but so far, this finding is not confirmed and is not a harmful effect in any case. The primary potential problem with ultrasounds is that ultrasound images are often grainy and do not provide excessive detail. It may be difficult to distinguish between tissues or see through various organs. Some patients may go through all the trouble of scheduling an ultrasound and then learn they need an MRI or other imaging tests after all.