Are excessive ultrasound scans bad for unborn babies? | Science

Are excessive ultrasound scans bad for unborn babies?

Probably not, but we can't be certain. "Ultrasound is a [source of] energy. At the extreme it will cause problems," says David Liu, head of the foetal care unit at the City Hospital in Nottingham. "At the low extreme it doesn't cause anything at all. It's just like talking. The [ultrasound units] designed for scanning are designed in such a way that it does not cause any harm."

Some doctors raised concerns this week that some parents were exposing their unborn babies to too many scans. They warned that the increasing practice of making DVD movies of unborn babies or having 3D pictures taken might carry unknown risks. The Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists said ultrasound scans should be limited to medical procedures rather than being done for "entertainment purposes".

Under normal NHS procedures, two brief scans are taken to check for abnormalities. But private clinics have developed a lucrative sideline in non-medical scans for parents to keep mementoes of their child before birth.

Liu says the concerns are unfounded. "When there's some abnormality or we're not clear about the structural defect of a baby, we sometimes spend hours scanning them," he says. Scanning for a video or a picture would be for minuscule amounts of time by comparison. In addition, says Liu, ultrasound scans have been used for around 20 years with no ill effects.

Previous research on potential risks has suggested that excessive scanning could cause growth problems. But Liu disputes the findings. He says the study involved unusually small babies that were scanned more often anyway.

He says that perhaps those warning against non-medical scans are railing against the commercialisation of a medical procedure. "Some of my colleagues are, likewise, unhappy that people are capitalising on a scan. It niggles them a bit."

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