I think Ultrasounds are an area of obstetrics that really need to be studied.
They have NOT been Proven Safe
There have been NO studies that show they are safe. There are issues brought up that cause concern.
If women were told this information, they may be more conservative in getting them.
There are certain high-risk pregnancies where multiple ultrasounds are warranted.
But for most low-risk moms ONE ultrasound around 20 weeks is sufficient.
Are ultrasounds safe?
The easy answer. We DON’T KNOW!
That scares me.
It scares me more that moms don’t know that we don’t know if it is safe or not.
Anything more than one 20 week ultrasound should have a good medical reason to do it.
Since we don’t know if it is safe or not, why expose your baby to something risky unless there is a very good reason?
If your care provider is suggesting multiple ultrasounds, ASK why! Some will automatically do one every visit, on every mom!
Here are 2 good articles to get more information about ultrasounds.
Dr. Wagner – Are ultrasounds more harm than good?
Dr. Sarah J. Buckley – Ultrasound Scans – cause for concern.
One scary thing –
A blast of ultrasounds to the testes is believed to stop sperm production for 6 months. What does this do to our babies?
A pregnant friend was complaining about how their provider wasn’t letting them get one until X weeks (can’t remember what they said). Inside I was cheering for the doctor. I kinda want to find out who their provider is for future reference.
Agreed……Kmom at plus size pregnancy site also has a good write up on things ultrasound. I have had one during labor with my first…one accidentally with my second pregnancy (scheduled one for other issues before I knew I was pregnant) and none with my last HBAC… all babies fine thanks!
I didn’t have any last pregnancy and declined the doppler too, once I determined that they were the same thing. Although, we did use them during the 42 hour labor and had the EFT during the time at the hospital. :/
This pregnancy, however, I just felt really disconnected and very worried that there was some major thing wrong with my baby. The 20 week ultrasound was such a mind reliever! Even now as I approach the birth, I feel so much more calm feeling like at least I know the baby is whole. If something goes wrong during birth or is deeply internally wrong, that is possible, but I saw the heart chambers and the brain lobes, etc. I think this mental well being is beneficial to my labor preparations.
But I agree, they can DEFINITELY be overused.
I think this is a good example of following your intuition. You had the need for an ultrasound to reassure yourself. So you did it. I think that it can be a very helpful tool.
Thanks for sharing. I know very few moms IRL who have had none.
YES, I would find that care provider and possibly refer to them as well.