3-D Ultrasound
3-d Image of the spinal column
3-dimensional
ultrasound has moved out of the research and development stages
over the past ten years and is now very much in the News. Faster and more advanced commercial models
are coming into the market. The scans requires special probes and software
to accumulate and render the images, and the rendering.
Scan time has been reduced from minutes to seconds. A good 3D image is often
quite impressive and further 2D scans may be extracted from 3D blocks
of scanned information. Volumetric measurements are more accurate and
both doctors and parents can better appreciate a certain abnormality
or the
absence of a certain abnormality in a 3D scan than a 2D one and there
is the possibility of increasing psychological bonding between the parents
and the baby.
A large volume of literature and documentation is expected
to come out in the coming years and the diagnosis of congenital anomalies
could receive revived attention. Present evidence has already suggested
that even small defects such as spina bifida, cleft lips/palate, and
polydactyl may be more lucidly demonstrated. Other more subtle features
such as low-set ears, facial dysmorphia or clubbing of feet can be better
assessed, leading to
more effective diagnosis of chromosomal abnormalities.
The study of
foetal cardiac malformations is also receiving attention. The ability
to obtain a good 3D picture is nevertheless still very much dependent
on operator skill, the amount of liquor around the foetus, it's position
and the degree of maternal obesity, so that a good image is not always
readily obtainable.
Experts in this field have not considered that 3D ultrasound will be
a mandatory evolution of our conventional 2D scans, rather it is an
additional piece of tool like doppler ultrasound. Whether 3D ultrasound
will provide unique information or merely supplemental information will
only wait to be seen. It's greatest potential is still in research and
particularly in the study of foetal embryology.