FETAL
ULTRASOUND SERVICES
Why
do ultrasound during pregnancy?
There are many reasons why your doctor may recommend ultrasound
testing at different stages of your pregnancy. The following list provides
you with some of the more common uses of ultrasound.
| First
trimester ultrasound to evaluate:
Possible miscarriage
Bleeding
Uncertain fetal age
Multiple pregnancy
Uterine masses
Ovarian masses
Prenatal genetic screening
Ectopic pregnancy
|
Third
trimester ultrasound to evaluate:
Inadequate growth
Excessive growth
Abnormal amounts of amniotic fluid
Placental location
Twin growth
Follow up of anomalies
Risk of premature birth
|
Second
trimester ultrasound to evaluate:
Uncertain fetal age
Placental location
Multiple pregnancy
Screening for anomalies
Gender determination
Follow up of first trimester abnormalities
|
Biophysical
profile to evaluate:
Third trimester assessment of fetal well-being.
|
What
will happen during the procedure?
In early pregnancy, a narrow vaginal ultrasound probe is used to obtain
clear images of the embryo and uterus. This procedure is painless, and
lasts only a few minutes. In later pregnancy, the images are taken using
an ultrasound probe on the abdomen.
What
should I do to prepare for this procedure?
Your
ultrasound test does not require a full bladder.
DO
NOT BRING SMALL CHILDREN to the exam, as they become easily bored
and may disrupt your attention, or that of the sonographer. A family member
may be asked to attend your small child in the waiting room, and may miss
seeing the exam.
What
about insurance?
Come
to your appointment a bit ahead of the scheduled appointment to fill out
the appropriate paperwork. If you anticipate insurance covering this procedure,
you may need a referral from your primary physician, and/or an authorization
number for the test. We can not perform the exam if a referral is needed
for the ultrasound examination to be covered by your carrier.
Many
carriers have limitations on the indications for or the number of ultrasound
examinations, and you should be prepared to pay at the time of service
if the test is not a covered service.
|