4D Ultrasound: The Next Step to Seeing Your Baby better?
A patient feels her baby move inside of her, and she wishes she could see her child’s face as he’s growing in the comfort of her belly. 3D ultrasound has made this possible in recent years, but now, 4D ultrasound is taking the pre-birth baby viewing experience to a whole new level.
4D ultrasounds are becoming increasingly popular as parents-to-be desire to learn more about their little ones in the womb.
So, the question is, how much better is a 4D ultrasound? Is it really that much better than its 3D predecessor?
Here’s a rundown of the many ways a 4D ultrasound can provide for your patients better views of their new arrivals.
Let’s get started!
What Makes 4D Ultrasound so Unique?
We’ve all seen them — your traditional, run-of-the-mill 2D ultrasounds. These are basically your black-and-white still images of your little bundles of joy.
3D ultrasounds take things a step farther, as they provide a deeper picture and thus a closer view of your baby’s features.
If the 2D version is a hill and the 3D version is a mountain, then the 4D version is Mount Everest in the technology world.
With 4D technology, your patient can easily see her 3D baby move in real time. For instance, she might see her baby kick, wave or make a certain facial expression.
Both Parents Can Bond More Easily with the Baby
Why is the extra-movement component of 4D technology tickling so many expectant parents’ fancy?
Because it feels so real. It brings a baby to life — and that’s the next-best thing to holding one in your arms in real life.
With a 4D ultrasound, the mom can easily develop a strong bond with Baby in utero. But more than ever before, even the dad can start to feel much more connected to the little one.
The result? Both parents may naturally feel more inclined to take care of themselves and therefore of the baby before Little Junior makes his big debut.
Photography
In a world seemingly run by social media, who doesn’t like photos?
Most parents-to-be can’t wait to share their little ones with their social media friends and family. But with 4D ultrasound, they no longer have to wait until after their babies are born to display their children’s faces with pride.
4D technology allows you to obtain clear pictures that reveal the baby’s size, body shape, and facial features. Your patient just might see her little bundle blink, yawn, suck her thumb, smile or scratch.
A mommy-to-be’s family and friends will love them, and so will the baby when she grows up. We adults today don’t have the privilege of seeing ourselves as babies in 4D, but parents’ children today can.
And that’s a beautiful thing.
Peace of Mind
For an expectant mother, it’s nice to hear a doctor tell her that Baby’s doing fine. But sometimes it’s just not enough.
She wants to see him for herself and make sure that he’s okay. And that’s okay.
With 4D technology, she can have a peace of mind knowing that her child is in perfect health, is growing appropriately and has a healthy heartbeat.
After all, you can easily determine the baby’s pulse and view the baby’s different body parts with this state-of-the-art technology.
The better your patient feels, the healthier of an environment her baby will have, and thus, the healthier the baby will feel, too.
Physical Issue Detection
One of the chief benefits of a 4D ultrasound is that you can more efficiently detect a fetus deformity with the images produced from it.
This is possible because the images reveal a fetus’s anatomy in detail.
The more quickly and accurate you can point out a health issue — which may include an ectopic pregnancy or abnormal bleeding, for example — the sooner it can be addressed for both the mother’s and the baby’s sake.
This technology can also be helpful for finding fibroids or ovarian tumors, which is good news for women whether they are pregnant or not.
Excitement
Perhaps one of the most fascinating things about 4D technology when it comes to ultrasounds is that it points to the technology advancement that our society continues to benefit from.
The parents benefit, the baby benefits and you benefit, as your job is easier now than it was even 10 years ago. And every patient benefits from that.
When to do an Ultrasound
Parents can enjoy realistic and clear pictures of their babies during the entire pregnancy period.
So, what’s the ideal time to complete a 4D ultrasound? The answer to this question is based on what the patient is interested in seeing.
For instance, during the early stages of your pregnancy, Mom can see her child’s entire body since she is so small. However, she might not see a lot of detail in the face area. Still, she gets to see the baby move around quite a bit.
In the 24- to 32-week period, your patient will likely see the child’s facial features the best. Plus, Mom will still see her baby on the move quite a bit.
After 32 weeks, you won’t see as much movement (because face it: Mommy’s tummy can stretch only so far). Plus, getting good shots of the baby might be difficult based on her position.
But she’ll fall in love with her baby’s chubby and more detailed face.
The best option for a patient is if she can do a couple of sessions — during different trimesters. However, if she wants only one session, doing it during the period of 24 weeks to 32 weeks is ideal.
How We Can Help
We know how much patients value seeing their little ones in utero. That’s why we have a top-notch team featuring product development, probe repair, acoustic testing, regulatory and medical imaging professionals.
We are dedicated to providing hospitals and original equipment manufacturers with quality ultrasound-related services and products.
Contact us to find out more about how our products and services can help you to meet patients’ and clients’ needs effectively, thus giving birth to a strong bottom line long term.