Nowadays, the use of technology to monitor fetal well-being is progressing rapidly, one of which is the use of ultrasound technology (USG). Ultrasound is a way that obstetricians can see or record how the activity and development of the baby in the womb
Ultrasound has many benefits during pregnancy, especially in the 1st trimester of pregnancy to see the presence or absence of pregnancy and also in the 2nd and 3rd trimesters to assess the presence or absence of abnormalities in the fetus, sex and complications that require monitoring during pregnancy.
In doing an ultrasound, you use a device called a transducer which can emit high-frequency sound and will generate sound waves that will determine the size, shape and organ.
This information produces an image that will be on the computer screen and the doctor will explain the shape of the image. Even ultrasound can help in diagnosing certain conditions. In addition, ultrasound is also useful for knowing the number of pregnancies, gestational age, location of pregnancy, how the baby is positioned, the location of the placenta, whether congenital defects are found, the amount of amniotic fluid in the amniotic fluid and the development of the fetus in the womb.
In addition, a study carried out in a long period of 30 years in pregnant women who frequently performed ultrasounds showed no adverse side effects for the physical and intellectual development of the fetus. So, ultrasound falls into the safe category.
However, ultrasound has several types where each type of ultrasound has different benefits, such as the following:
1. Standard Ultrasound
Standard ultrasound is the most common type that is done during a pregnancy test. The doctor or nurse holds a transducer shaped stick and then rubs it over the stomach to produce a two-dimensional image of the baby.
2. Transvaginal scans
Transvaginal scans are usually performed early in your pregnancy. This method is indeed better than abdominal or abdominal ultrasound. This is because even mothers who are overweight or obese can clearly know how the baby’s heart rate is in the womb and notice any changes in the cervix that can cause complications, such as miscarriage or premature labor. However, transvaginal ultrasound is only a complement not a substitute for abdominal ultrasound.
3. Doppler imaging
This type of ultrasound aims to measure how well the blood is flowing in your baby’s body. In addition, this ultrasound is also performed for mothers who have high blood pressure or the growth of the baby in the fetus is slower than usual.
4. Fetal echocardiography
Ultrasound Echocardiography of the fetus aims to provide details on how the baby’s heartbeat is. However, this ultrasound is usually performed on babies who have heart defects.
5. 3D ultrasound
3D or 3-dimensional ultrasound will produce good and clear images because it looks intact in 3-dimensional format. Therefore, it will be easy for you to understand and see how your baby is developing. The tool used to perform this ultrasound is quite expensive, which is why it costs you quite a lot.
6. 4D ultrasound
4D or real time ultrasound is a sophisticated technology in 69.16.224.147 where the images displayed are 3-dimensional and moving, so that you can clearly see the movements and facial expressions of the fetus.