SONOGRAPHY FETAL ASSESSMENT, PROTOCOLS, AND INTERPRETATION

Course overview

FETAL ULTRASONOGRAPHY IS A STANDARD AND VITAL COMPONENT OF A COMPREHENSIVE FETAL EVALUATION IN PREGNANCY. THERE ARE SPECIFIC INDICATIONS FOR USING ULTRASOUND IN EACH TRIMESTER AND ASSESSING BOTH THE FETUS AND THE MOTHER BY ULTRASONOGRAPHY. BASED ON MATERNAL AND FETAL RISK FACTORS, ULTRASOUND TIMING AND FREQUENCY ARE INDIVIDUALIZED TO EVALUATE THE FETAL COMPONENTS AT THE HIGHEST RISK FOR FETAL ANOMALIES. UNDERSTANDING THE TYPES OF FETAL ASSESSMENTS AND THEIR INDICATIONS IN EACH TRIMESTER PERMITS EARLIER DETECTION AND DIAGNOSIS OF FETAL ANOMALIES ALLOWING FOR A MULTIDISCIPLINARY MANAGEMENT APPROACH. THIS ACTIVITY REVIEWS THE CLASSIFICATIONS AND INDICATIONS OF FETAL ULTRASOUNDS IN EACH TRIMESTER AND HIGHLIGHTS THE ROLE OF THE INTERPROFESSIONAL TEAM IN IDENTIFYING THE OPPORTUNITIES TO SCREEN AND DIAGNOSE FETAL ANOMALIES TO MAXIMIZE PATIENT AUTONOMY AND CLINICAL OUTCOMES.