What Is An Ultrasound?
Ultrasound uses high-frequency sound waves to create images of the inside of your body. An ultrasound picture is known as a sonogram. At Aspire Women’s Center, a licensed registered nurse administers a free and confidential ultrasound.
How Does Ultrasound Work?
Limited abdominal obstetric ultrasounds are painless and easy. The nurse applies a gel to your abdomen. A wand-like device called a transducer is then passed through the gel. The ultrasound uses the echoes of high-frequency sound waves to create an image of the inside of your body, which can be seen on a computer screen. It doesn’t use radiation, like X-rays, to make the image.
Why Do I Need An Ultrasound?
A pregnancy test indicates the possibility of a pregnancy, but ultrasound confirms it. An ultrasound answers the three following questions:
- Is the pregnancy growing, or have I had a miscarriage?
- How far along is the pregnancy?
- What is the pregnancy’s location?
Is The Pregnancy Growing?
The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG) estimates as many as 26% of all pregnancies end in a natural miscarriage. That means over one in four pregnancies end, perhaps even before a woman realizes she’s pregnant!
You might get a false-positive pregnancy test after a miscarriage because there is leftover hCG in your system.
How does ultrasound determine if your pregnancy is growing? It can detect a heartbeat as early as 5 or 6 weeks of pregnancy. If there is no heartbeat, it’s either too early, or you have possibly had a miscarriage.
What Is The Gestational Age?
The gestational age means how far along you are in your pregnancy. Many women are surprised that their pregnancies are farther along than they realized.
Period tracker apps are not always reliable. And figuring out when you will most likely get pregnant is even more challenging. The nurse takes measurements to determine how many weeks you’ve been pregnant.
What Is The Pregnancy’s Location?
Knowing your pregnancy’s location is vital to your health and safety. An ectopic pregnancy forms outside the uterus. Although not all that common, an ectopic pregnancy is extremely dangerous. You must visit your healthcare provider immediately.
Now’s the time to schedule a free and confidential pregnancy test appointment. We’ll schedule you for a free and confidential ultrasound if the test is positive. We want you to have as much information as possible to make an empowered decision.