You are pregnant, congratulations. You are starting a stage that will change the rest of your life. A stage full of illusion, and why not say it, with certain fears. To remove some of these is that ultrasound is used, in addition to other tests and medical check-ups. Therefore, the first thing you should know is that the purpose of the ultrasound is verify that everything is going correctly, both for the mother and the fetus.
With the purpose of prevent, diagnose them early or control the possible alterations that may appear during pregnancy, This is why your doctor will recommend that you get an ultrasound. But there is also an emotional component in the ultrasound, you will be able to see your baby, before birth. We tell you what each of the ultrasounds that they will recommend consists of, in a normal pregnancy, and the types of ultrasounds that there are.
Meaning of ultrasound during pregnancy
Before performing any ultrasound they should inform you about the modality and objectives of the exploration ultrasound that you are going to perform. An ultrasound in a radiological technique, without risk to the baby or the mother, which allows to see the structures and organs inside the body of the fetus.
The three recommended ultrasounds, Minimum what they are going to do are:
- Chromosome screening ultrasound at 12 weeks
- morphological at week 20
- ultrasound to assess fetal growth between 32-34 weeks.
The first of these ultrasounds establishes a statistical risk, through ultrasound, analytical and personal criteria, of the possibility that a chromosomal alteration of the fetus exists in pregnancy. In the second of them, week 20, anatomical abnormalities are diagnosed or ruled out of the fetus. Lastly, the third trimester ultrasound aims to establish that the growth of the fetus is adequate for its gestational age, and to assess structural pathologies that have appeared in the later stages of pregnancy.
Types of ultrasounds
In high-risk pregnancies, more tests are almost always necessary than in a normal course of pregnancy. That is why it is possible that they will make you a ultrasound at week 28-30 and another at week 36-38. And these ultrasounds may even be supplemented with some special tests. Do not be alarmed, it is simply that you require more control.
Before the first screening ultrasound, and depending on your history, your doctor may recommend a vaginal scan, to verify that the amniotic sac has already been implanted. It is done by inserting a transducer through the vagina. Color Doppler ultrasound uses sound waves that, when reflected, allow us to see how the blood flows through the blood vessels and arteries of the fetus.
The 3D, 4D, 5D ultrasounds They use specific software to get a more complete image of the fetus. Thanks to this technique, the most realistic images of the baby are obtained, its movements can be clearly appreciated. The best time to perform the 5D echo is between weeks 25 and 32.
Is there an emotional ultrasound?
Ultrasound, in addition to seeing the status of the fetus, and knowing its development, is the first contact that the parents have, and more specifically the mother with the fetus. Therefore, even if there is a medical objective, before an ultrasound an emotional aspect opens up, in which the parents reinforce the bond with the future child.
The so-called emotional ultrasound is performed with the same diagnostic equipment, but is specifically focused on showing parents the baby, with his characteristic gestures and in his own environment. It can be done at any time during pregnancy, but the best images are obtained between weeks 25 and 30.
However, before an ultrasound, complications can also occur. Sometimes the feeling of tranquility that was wanted to give to the parents, can be truncated when observing certain anomalies. Professionals will not inform parents until they are completely sure, through other tests, the suspicions that have been detected in an ultrasound.