WHAT IS GENERAL ULTRASOUND
IMAGING?
Your doctor has just requested an examination of one or
more organs in your abdomen using ultrasound.
This could include any one
of, or a combination of the following: pancreas, gallbladder, liver, spleen,
and the kidneys. Although you may have heard about ultrasound before, or
possibly been examined with ultrasound in the past, you still may have
questions about your examination.
Why Should I Have
an Ultrasound Examination?
There are many reasons for examining
the abdomen with ultrasound. Among the more common reasons are:
- To look for causes of upper abdominal pain,
including: gallstones, cholecystitis, pancreatitis, kidney stones, or blockage
in blood vessels of the intestines
- To look for causes of lower abdominal pain,
including: appendicitis, inflammation of the small and large intestines, and
hernias
- To look for abnormalities that may be present in
the abdominal organs, such as masses or enlargements in the spleen or
liver
- To evaluate the nature of a mass that may have
been felt by the examining doctor or seen on other radiological
examinations
- To determine the cause of kidney failure, such as
kidney disease, urinary blockage, or blockage of the kidneys' blood
vessels
- To evaluate for the cause of jaundice or abnormal
liver enzymes
- To look for enlargements (aneurysms) of the
abdominal aorta
- To evaluate for problems of flow in the blood
vessels of the abdominal organs
|
Why
ADI
