Most people are curious as to the processes of what an ultrasound technician does. It’s always an honor to help couples see their infant while he is still in the womb and pointing out the baby’s features to them. Doctors always advise pregnant women to get a scan early and half way through their pregnancy for the simple reason of checking the development of the baby.
Anomaly scans are probably the most important scans pregnant women should consider as this is the period wherein the baby is already fully develop with organs clearly visible to be examined. By inspecting the details of the infant a sonographer will be able to determine whether the baby is developing normally based on the proportions of their body.
The key factors that sonographers will observe in order to determine how the infant is developing are the size of the head, length of the spine, face, vital organs such as the heart and the extremities of the infant’s body. The size of the head can indicate if there are any brain problems developing. The spine’s length and curve will help determine if all the bones are aligning correctly.
The abdominal wall must be able to completely cover all the internal organs on the front. The atria and ventricle, the two chambers of the heart must be within the same size and that each chamber should be able to work in rhythm with the beat. The kidneys should both be present, little trivia about this is that the baby is already producing urine for a couple of months now. This is nothing to worry about though as it is being removed properly from both you and your baby’s body.
The position of the placenta will also be analyzed during the anomaly scan. The placenta is normally found in the front wall/anterior or at the back wall/posterior. The level of amniotic fluid is also a factor as this determines if the baby is able to move freely.
During the pregnancy scan the sonographer will also measure main portions of the baby’s body to further ensure that the infant is developing properly. He or she will measure the head circumference, abdominal circumference and the femur. Each has an average measurement that the sonographer will compare it with.
The importance of the anomaly scan is that it can remove all the potential problems that are present in pregnancy, and if a problem is found the medical team will be able to prepare accordingly before the due date to better handle the baby’s health requirements. It is very important to minimize the risks in pregnancy as much as possible.
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A common question asked by pregnant women is how many times they need to schedule for a pregnancy scan. Ideally it should only about two or three times during the entire nine month period in order to reduce the risk of radiation effect. For a normal pregnancy that is low-risk it is pretty normal to only be scheduled by the doctor for two pregnancy scans, dating scan (12 weeks in) and anomaly scan (24 weeks in).