Ultrasound Transducers

How Ultrasound Transducers Relay Images

Ultrasound devices are one of the very common, but very valuable items of medical equipment. Most commonly known for its use in tracking a woman's pregnancy, ultrasound has a vast array of uses and is helpful in many different fields of medicine beyond obstetrics.

An ultrasound machine includes a network of devices including ultrasound transducers and a monitor. To take the ultrasound, the ultrasound tech, or sonographer, puts a special gel on the skin of the area to be looked at and presses the transducer to the skin. It is then moved across the skin and shows a picture of what lies beneath. But how does this work?

The term “ultrasound” refers to the sound waves that are sent through the ultrasound transducer, which are at pitch higher than human ears can detect. This sound bounces off objects beneath the skin, and are transmitted to the ultrasound transducer. This is then converted into an image that is displayed on the monitor for both the sonographer and patient to view.

There are different types of ultrasound transducers to use with different types of ultrasound equipment. A typical transducer looks something like a scanner used by cashiers in the grocery store. The part that would “scan” the product your purchasing is the part that is moved across your skin and giving off the ultrasound waves. It also relays the message to the computer that creates the image on the monitor for the physician to see, measure and evaluate as needed.

Of course the ultrasound transducer has to be specific to the type of ultrasound machine it's connected to. A Doppler ultrasound uses different sound frequencies to get the image, allowing it to detect the motion and direction of blood flow through the veins. It sends a different image than regular ultrasound, and a color Doppler even color codes the veins and the direction of blood flow in each.

Also, not all ultrasound transducers have the same shape. For example, a transvaginal ultrasound transducer has a longer wand shape, with the actual tranducer at the head. This specialized form allows the transducer to fit easily and comfortable within the vagina, while still being able to take a clear picture of the organs. This is used to get images of the female organs that lie within the pelvis and are difficult or impossible to ultrasound through the abdomen.

The ultrasound transducer is one of the most important parts of the system, as it is the means of getting the image in the first place. Finding a good one that suits the needs of doctor and his patients is important. It's possible to keep your system and upgrade your transducer or to replace an old or faulty one.

 

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• Ultrasound Scanning
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• Ultrasound Transducers
• Vascular Ultrasound



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