Why Are Ultrasounds Done?

Pregnancy ultrasounds are performed for a variety of reasons:

• To diagnose pregnancy
• To determine if the pregnancy is viable
• To verify that the pregnancy is in the proper location and notectopic or “tubal”
• To determine whether the mother is carrying more than one fetus
• To verify the gestational age of the fetus, and thus to help establish the due date
• To detect birth defects (though not all birth defects are detectable using ultrasound)
• To ensure that there is not too much or too little amniotic fluidaround the baby
• To monitor fetal growth and heartbeat
• To verify presentation (is the baby coming head first?) and make sure the baby is not in a breech position
• To analyze the blood flow through the umbilical cord
• To establish the anatomy of the placenta and how the cord inserts into the placenta
• To detect pregnancy-related tumors (very rare!)

Other Pregnancy Term

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