Offered at BMH, medical ultrasound imaging and cardiac ultrasound imaging, also called or sonography and echocardiography involves exposing part of the body to high-frequency sound waves to produce pictures of the inside of the body. Ultrasound is often the first-line diagnostic tool, a starting point to problem solve a patient’s condition. Ultrasound diagnostic imaging technology offers unlimited scanning angles and dedicated views of the organ systems for such procedures as abdominal, gynecological, OB, small parts, breast imaging, vascular imaging, pediatrics and musculo-skeletal.
Cardiac ultrasound imaging or echocardiography is an imaging procedure in which the goal is to generate a picture of the heart for the purpose of evaluating a heart condition or suspected heart problem. Like other types of ultrasound imaging, cardiac ultrasound is non-invasive and painless, and it can be performed as an outpatient procedure in a clinic or hospital. There are a variety of reasons for a doctor to request a cardiac ultrasound, and he or she will usually discuss the reason for the procedure with the patient at the time that the procedure is recommended.
Both medical and cardiac ultrasound are non-invasive, readily available, portable, and involves minimal patient discomfort. Ultrasound exams do not use ionizing radiation (as used in x-rays). Because ultrasound images are captured in real-time, they can show the structure and movement of the body’s internal organs, as well as blood flowing through blood vessels.
