Ultrasound is used throughout pregnancy to help provide the best care possible for you and your baby. Not only is seeing an image of your baby for the first time an incredible experience, it is also very important for verifying the health of your developing baby. Ultrasound during pregnancy is safe and does not involve any radiation exposure to you or your fetus.
First Trimester Ultrasound
Because the baby is still very small at this point, this ultrasound is usually done through a vaginal approach. Ultrasound in the first trimester is used to:
- Verify that a pregnancy is within the uterus
- Evaluate bleeding in early pregnancy
- Confirm the age of the pregnancy
- Evaluate the ovaries
- Confirm the number of fetuses
Second Trimester Ultrasound
This is the “big” ultrasound and is considered a fetal evaluation. It is performed between 19 and 20 weeks gestation. This usually requires about 30 minutes. The primary purpose of this ultrasound is to ensure that the baby is structurally normal. Specifically we evaluate:
- Multiple different portions of the fetal brain
- Face
- Structure of the fetal heart
- Stomach
- Kidneys
- Bladder
- Umbilical cord
- Spine
- Arms and Legs
- Placental location
- Cervical length
- Fetal Gender (at patient request)
Third trimester ultrasound
Ultrasounds are generally not necessary in the third trimester; however, your pregnancy may have reasons for which you need closer evaluation of your baby. Limited ultrasounds allow us to evaluate:
- Fetal size
- Amount of amniotic fluid
- Location of placenta
- Presentation of the baby
- Presentation of twins
