Reviews and News on Ultrasound Machines

Ultrasound technologists, also known as “diagnostic medical sonographers” spend their days operating ultrasound machines. Using high frequency sound (so high that humans cannot hear it), ultrasound machines use sound waves to create two dimensional images of the internal organs of the body. It is also commonly used to take images of a fetus during pregnancy, and to make images of the heart, cardiovascular system and abdomen.

Besides becoming ultrasound technologists, a medical imaging technologist can also specialize in CT scans, MRI and X-ray technology.

As a career choice, the field of medical imaging marries the use of technical knowledge and state-of-the-art equipment, with the ability to interact well with patients. As the population ages, the demand for ultrasound technologists is growing. They are not only needed in hospitals, but also at doctor’s offices and other health care settings. The recent expansion of ambulatory care and outpatient centers has created a new demand for medical professionals who can operate ultrasound machines, and the U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics expects this demand to grow another 18 percent by the year 2018.

As a prerequisite for a profession like this, it helps to be a person who enjoys working in a helpful role with people. This is because a technologist will be working directly with patients on a daily basis. Some hospitals offer non-degree training programs that typically last for two years and cost about $3,000 per year. According the Jackson Memorial School of Technological Radiology, a Florida-based ultrasound technologist can expect to earn about $47,000 right out of school.

Ultrasound imaging was developed using the same principles as sonar, a technology that is used to find ships at sea. The only difference is, medical ultrasound machines are able to measure the length of time it takes sound waves to bounce back from internal areas of the body. The net effect is a two dimensional image that identifies the distance, size and shape of objects within. These images allow doctors to diagnose abnormalities, detect tumors, examine tendon tears, and evaluate the eyes.

During the course of an ultrasound examination, the machine’s transducer is used to show the targeted organ and produce images to be studied. The transducer itself emits sound waves and then detects the returning echoes as it passes over the body part being examined. It does this by differentiating between the sounds that are made by various tissues, because they each respond differently to the transducer’s frequency. The resulting echoes are then analyzed by a computer within the ultrasound machine, and they are shown to the doctor as moving images of the area being examined

Ultrasound waves pass quite readily through soft tissues and fluids, which make ultrasound machines the preferred method of examining fluid-filled organs like the uterus, liver and gallbladder. However, since ultrasound waves are unable to penetrate through bones or gases, the use of ultrasound machines for these areas is limited. Still, ultrasound is commonly used to study most parts of the body in hospitals and clinical settings.

Ultrasound technology is used for many applications within medicine and industry, but its most common use is in the field of obstetrics. Doctors use ultrasound machines during pregnancy to view the uterus and fetus, a test that is usually performed between 16 and 18 weeks into the pregnancy.

Some of the ways that ultrasound is used in obstetrics include:

* Determining the date of conception and the expected due date, as well as fetal size
* Revealing multiple pregnancies
* Identifying fetal abnormalities
* Diagnosing congenital heart disease
* Amniocentesis
* Determining the position of the placenta
* Diagnosing an ectopic pregnancy or impending miscarriage, or the cause of early fetal death

In addition to pregnancy-related issues, ultrasound can also be used to view the fallopian tubes, ovaries and other female reproductive organs to look for cysts and determine the cause of infertility.

Non obstetric uses for ultrasound machines include treatment and diagnosis of many disorders, including:

* Examination of internal organs, such as the appendix to diagnose appendicitis
* Scanning the brain of a newborn baby
* Evaluating the eyes
* Locating gallstones in bile ducts or the gallbladder
* Scanning the liver to diagnose cirrhosis, cysts, abscesses or tumors
* Scanning of the kidneys to diagnose congenital defects, hydronephrosis or other obstructions
* Close examination of tendon tears

The uses of ultrasound machines have grown exponentially since the early days of ultrasound technology, and the technology continues to advance. New ultrasound applications are discovered on a very regular basis, and it is now being used in many surgical procedures.

Ultrasound is a word that is used to describe sound that on such a high frequency that the human ear cannot hear it. In general, the lowest frequency at which ultrasound can be done is 20 KHz, because anything below this frequency is audible to the human ear, which is known as infra-sound.

Ultrasound machines use a transducer, which emits ultrasound waves and detects their echoes, then transmits this information to a computer monitor. From there, the echoing sound waves are transformed into images, allowing doctors to see organs or a human fetus with clarity. The benefit of using ultrasound is that it has no known harmful effects to the human body and uses no radiation, making it much safer form of diagnostic technology than x-rays.

In the world of medicine, ultrasound machines have many applications, but the most common one is collecting information about the fetus during pregnancy. Depending on the type of ultrasound machine and where it is used on the body, it can be used to treat many different types of health problems.

Ultrasound can detect abnormalities in the heart, organs and other parts of the body. Ultrasound surgery can be used to treat tumors by focusing a highly intense ultrasound wave at specific frequencies. It can deliver highly penetrable chemotherapy medication to brain cells for treatment of brain cancer. Ultrasound can also administer physiotherapy; treatment of cataracts and even for teeth cleaning. Ultrasound is also used in many forms of diagnostic treatment, but most commonly for viewing a woman’s uterus and the fetus during pregnancy.

Thanks to recent advances in ultrasound technology, doctors expect to be using ultrasound machines more and more as a way to treat patients.

When a patient shows up at their dermatologist with a suspicious skin lesion that looks like skin cancer, the traditional method of diagnosis has always been biopsy. But thanks to advancements in high frequency ultrasound machines, doctors can now diagnose skin cancer using a method known as elastography.

This new technology has the potential to make skin cancer diagnosis a lot simpler and less painful for patients because, like all ultrasound techniques, it is non-invasive. Using this new form of ultrasound machines technology has proven to be highly successful in differentiating between benign and malignant skin abnormalities.

In the United States, over a million people are diagnosed with some form of skin cancer every year. While melanoma is still the rarest form of skin cancer, it is also the most deadly because it often goes undiagnosed. Had they been detected sooner, most cases of melanoma would have been cured, which could have prevented nearly 12,000 deaths in 2009 alone.

One would think that dermatologists would be practiced enough in identifying skin cancer that they would catch most cases of it with the naked eye, but in many people, malignant lesions can appear benign at first glance, especially early on. By using high frequency elastography, doctors will now be able to perform a quick, noninvasive test right in their office, using a special type of ultrasound machine. In many cases, this technique may help patients avoid a biopsy, and in other cases it may cause their doctor to take a second look at an otherwise un-suspicious lesion.

Elastography works by measuring the elasticity, or relative stiffness of a specific lesion. Because malignant lesions tend to be stiffer than non-cancerous growths, doctors can more readily detect the presence of skin cancer by using a specially equipped ultrasound machine.

Thanks to a simulation training course in ultrasound guided procedures, many medical residents have been able to hone their skills in a learning environment that doesn’t affect patient safety. The Henry Ford Hospital conducted a study that found this to be a highly effective teaching tool that will undoubtedly improve confidence among residents when they start using these new skills on the job. While conducting an ultrasound test may look easy enough to the outsider, practitioners need practice to gain the knowledge needed to use ultrasound machines with dexterity and speed.

The study was conducted while would-be doctors performed some of the most common ultrasound procedures, including biopsies of the breast, liver and thyroid, as well as the draining of excess fluid from the body. Students were able to use mannequins instead of actual patients, which allows for a more standardized form of teaching. Because they can practice the same procedure again and again, students were able to become more proficient than they would otherwise have been if their procedures were done on humans.

Each radiology student participating in this study was given a chance to learn techniques when using ultrasound machines through a combination of live training, video and written coursework. They each had six months to learn the skills within a simulated medical environment that recreates live surgical procedures as well as emergency care, intensive care and routine medical scenarios.

The mannequins themselves were equipped with hypo-echoic and hyper-echoic nodules that allow for a real-life ultrasound experience. Both before and after their training, student doctors were tested on their proficiency and knowledge of ultrasound technology. Not surprisingly, the students showed significant improvements after learning in a simulated hospital environment.

With the changing guidelines on the frequency of mammograms recommended for women under 50, the news about targeted breast ultrasound is drawing a lot of interest from the medical community. IN November, the U.S. Preventive Services Task Force revised its recommendation about mammography, saying that women under 50 only need testing every other year. This news drew ire from women’s health advocates and young breast cancer survivors whose lives were saved through early detection.

Until now, it was unclear whether the use of targeted breast ultrasound would be a clinically approved method of diagnosing cancerous tumors in young women, but two new US studies confirm this method as the “tool of choice” for use in women under the age of 40. Ultimately, this new test is expected to reduce the need for invasive biopsies in younger women. It is also less expensive and far safer than surgical excision or needle biopsy, which can be quite painful.

One of the two studies, led by the University of Washington between January 2002 and August 2006, involved 1,123 ultrasound examinations with women under 30 and the other one included 1,577 women between the ages of 30 and 39. The first study compared testing by using ultrasound machines to mammograms and the second compared it to biopsy.

Not only have these studies proven that ultrasound testing is an accurate way to diagnose cancerous tumors in younger women, it is also a positive sign for the advancement of ultrasound technology in general. According to Dr. Constance Lehman, who led the studies, it is time we started using ultrasound machines to reduce unnecessary dangers and costs associated with more invasive approaches.

Modern ultrasound machines are used in a variety of diagnostic capacities to help physicians identify disorders in a safe, radiation-free way. Because they are so easy to administer, ultrasound testing can detect problems earlier and allow treatment to start quickly. As a result, ultrasound machines are one of the most widely used pieces of medical equipment used in health care settings these days. Compared to early ultrasound equipment, today’s machines are far safer and more effective.

How is ultrasound equipment used today?

Since the introduction of ultrasound machines nearly fifty years ago, many breakthroughs have been made. Today’s machines use cyclic sound pressure that has a higher frequency than what human beings can hear, with a lower limit average of 20 KHz. As the sound energy penetrates its intended target, the machine measures the reflected projection and creates an image that renders the variances in projection.

Intrauterine photos are often taken of a gestating fetus using ultrasound technology, but medical sonograms, or “ultrasonography” is also a common technique used for diagnostic testing. By creating a 3-D image of internal organs, tissues and other structures, ultrasound machines can determine the size, depth and shape of tumors or lesions.

For biomedical purposes, therapeutic ultrasound can also be used in occupational or physical therapy, as well as cancer treatment. This type of ultrasound machine actually uses its power to do more than create an image; it can also create localized heating of bodily tissue. High intensity focused ultrasound, or HIFU is used by internists and oncologists to treat benign and malignant tumors. Ultrasound is also used in clinical settings to detect abnormalities of the abdominal, rectum and pelvic areas. Even cosmetic surgeons use ultrasound machines to assist in liposuction, sclerotherapy, elastography and plastic surgery.

Beyond its many traditional uses in human health care, veterinary clinics are also using ultrasound to treat and detect anomalies in pets and other mammals. But keep in mind that while ultrasound is non-invasive and safe, it is still a medical procedure and should be administered with care by a trained radiology clinician. Experienced professionals know how to regulate the machines to prevent overexposure to high frequency waves.

Seeing the image of an unborn baby on a screen is one of the most exciting ways to use ultrasound machines. In fact, many people don’t realize that, other than obstetrics, ultrasound is used as a diagnostic tool for many other areas of medicine. As other forms of ultrasound have become available, the fetal ultrasound machine has undergone some great technological breakthroughs itself.

Today’s fetal ultrasound machines allow patients to see both 3D and 4D images of the fetus, find out the baby’s gender, and profile the condition of their baby. But perhaps the most important function of the machine is to help doctors evaluate the development and growth of the fetus and identify any abnormalities.

While ultrasounds can be done at any time during a pregnancy, they are most commonly administered between the 18th and 20th week in a procedure that is known as an anomaly scan. This standard test only takes about twenty minutes, and provides parents with 2-D images, the real gestational age of the fetus, the gender (if desired) and other pertinent information about its growth and development. Any more advanced scanning will require 3-D images, which can take a lot longer.

In addition to routine scanning, professionally trained staffs can also treat tubal or ectopic pregnancies using ultrasound machines to determine the exact location of the fetus. In multiple pregnancies, ultrasound can also be used to find out how many babies are in the womb. Doctors also use the technology to analyze the baby’s heart rate, movement and breathing.

Where there is a high risk pregnancy, doctors also use ultrasound to check for the presence of Down’s Syndrome. Sometime between the 11th and 14th week, an obstetrician will use ultrasound to measure very specific parts of the fetus. It can also help the doctor to know where to place the needle when drawing amniotic fluid for genetic testing.

Ultrasound machines are a very important part of prenatal care. Thanks to recent breakthroughs, they provide a much higher level of technology today than when they were first introduced.

As our population ages, ultrasound clinics need to stay informed of new breakthroughs in the field of diagnostic testing. The Philips iU22 ultrasound machine is one of those breakthroughs. It offers premium image quality, performance and efficiency to improve work flow and communications in an ever-challenging health care environment.

As medical facilities with high-volume imaging needs look to improve their existing equipment, the iU22 ultrasound machine offers many advantages.

You can now view ultrasound images using the same format as MR and CT scans by using the View Forum workstation to re-scan large amounts of data into a familiar visual format. In addition, you can get critical data that is normally not available in two dimensional views, and measure the ultrasound scan against other diagnostic images.

Using the Philips C5-1 PureWave transducer, the iU22 ultrasound machine greatly reduces failed scans by as much as 69%. Using this technology can have a very positive impact on the productivity and effectiveness of your lab because the C5 cuts exam time down by up to 38% and reduces residual pain and fatigue in patients in up to 85% of all exams.

For women’s health, the Philips iU22 has proven to be a valuable tool in early detection of breast lesions. This state-of-the-art ultrasound machine allows clinicians to compensate for sound and speed variations on breast tissue, as well as various breast structure types, making them better able to see the details of lesions.

The Philips iU22 includes a valuable new feature – SmartExam – which allows clinicians to keep track of all steps in the scanning procedure, from mode changes to body markers and other important data. Even three-dimensional data can be incorporated into the study.