Early assessment scan (12 – 18 weeks)

An ultrasound examination is a painless medical examination which uses soundwaves to “see” inside the body. No radiation is used in ultrasound. A transducer (which is like a small microphone) is placed over the area of the body being examined. Soundwaves pass through the skin from the transducer and echoes are reflected back to it. Those echoes are converted into electrical signals which can then be viewed as images on a television screen.