What Doctors Don't Tell You...
Routine ultrasound screening of pregnant women does nothing to reduce the number of perinatal deaths, or improve pregnancy management or outcome, according to a study of 2600 women. ...
* Choose ‘fine-needle aspiration’ performed under ultrasound; it is thought to carry the least risks (Acta Cytol, 1995; 39: 449-52)
Frequent prenatal ultrasound exposure could restrict fetal growth by a third. ...
* Lung: PET scans are just as accurate as biopsies, with no significant health risks (Appl Radiol, 2003; 32: 9-17).
* Breast: MRI has variable accuracy (60-100 per cent)
When combined with plain X-rays, ultrasound is as effective as urography and may actually be safer, according to a new UK study.
The mainstay of modern obstetric diagnosis is the ultrasound scan (or sonography). Similar to radar, real-time scanners employ very-high-frequency pulsed sound waves (3.5-7 mHz, or 3.5-7 million cycles per second)
Ultrasound scans can predict Down’s syndrome. A nuchal scan measures the depth of the dark fluid-filled space at the back of the baby’s neck at 10-13 weeks of pregnancy. If the space is thicker than usual, your baby may be at risk of Down’s.
Yet another study confirms that routine ultrasound examination of normal women is of no benefit and the technique should be restricted to high-risk pregnancies.
Ultrasound scanning of pregnant women may cause their children to have delayed speech development, according to a Canadian study. ...
