Vet Ultrasound
What is vet ultrasound?
Ultrasound is a diagnostic tool used in many medical situations. The most common way people see this used is for pregnancy screening at the OBGYN office. We in the veterinary field also use ultrasound daily for diagnostics! The technology and science behind an ultrasound is simple; the ultrasound machine produces ultrasonic waves that move through tissue and reflect waves back to the wand of the machine. These reflections create a 2D image real time in the patient. This is how a basic ultrasound image is created.
Above you can see an example of an ultrasound video performed at Animal Hospital Maple Orchard.
The testing choices vary from patient to patient and doctor to doctor. However, the ultrasound testing is never the first test ran by a vet. Typically basic screening is performed to find the most common problems. If those results lead the vet to need more information they may discuss with you why ultrasound is the next step.
Above you can see an ultrasound keyboard that includes all the buttons and knobs that a vet would use while performing an ultrasound.
When your dog or cat needs an ultrasound we would like you to do the following to make the most of the imaging.
1. Coordinate with our front desk to schedule your pet with one of our vets that are trained to perform ultrasounds.
Call: 248-851-6645
2. We may ask to withhold food and water for the ultrasound that day. Ideally we would like 12 hours of fasting prior to the ultrasound for the best imaging. We can perform these scans every weekday.
3. Expect a 40 minute scan time. You can wait or even welcome to observe the scans depending on the hospital happenings at that time.
When an ultrasound is performed, some patients are sedated or anesthetized. But we will discuss this with you prior. Patients need to be still and laying on their back for an ultrasound to be performed of the abdomen. To help with this, we have a soft cushion shaped like a V to help with the patient’s comfort during this positioning.
Depending on the findings of the ultrasound with the vet, we can go over findings at the time of the scan. But there are cases where videos and still images from the ultrasound will be sent to a board certified radiologist for review. These reviews can take up to 3 days fot the hospital to get results back.
Do you need to cooridinate an ultrasound for your dog or cat?
Please call us at 248-851-6645
Or you can Make an Appointment, or request more information by using our online OTTO widget.
