I Had TWO Ultrasounds Today...

Hi everyone,

I went to my appointment for an ultrasound today. I thought it was only going to be an abdominal ultrasound, but was surprised after the tech told me to "Go empty your bladder. Then put this sheet around you and lay back down on the bed." So then came the TV US. That's when she turned on the doppler. The screen lit up in blue and red, with tiny spots of orange. I asked her about what I was seeing and she said, "Oh that's just blood flow." During both U/S's, she measured and marked many things. After she began the ultrasound, she then began asking me questions about why I had to see my Dr. in the first place, what did he tell me after I first saw him, etc. The vagueness is starting to get old.

I know this is all vague. But if anyone can shed any light on the doppler thing, I'd appreciate it very much. I think she was looking at my ovary when that happened.

[kcd86]

Doppler color flow(blood flow) imaging can be helpful in differentiating malignant from benign masses. Malignancies are rich in vascular blood flow, while benign cysts show no blood flow meaninng there is nothing feeding the suspected tumor.  they are also looking for :
Septations, if present, that are thick (>2 to 3 mm)
Color or power Doppler demonstration of flow in the solid component
Presence of any peritoneal fluid in postpostmenopausal women and more than a small amount of peritoneal fluid in premenopausal women is abnormal
Peritoneal masses, enlarged nodes.

[missaboo]

Hi Kevin!

Thanks for your response!

So what do the different colors in a doppler ultrasound mean?

[kcd86]

Doppler color flow systems assign a given color to the direction of flow; red is flow
toward, and blue is flow away from the transducer or sono probe. Not too sure what it means with regard to the ovary except to prove if a suspicious cyst/mass may have blood flow to it. It is more usefull when  when evaluating the heart valves