Applications of color Doppler ultrasound

This is an automatically translated article.

The article is professionally consulted by MSc, BS. Dang Manh Cuong - Radiologist - Radiology Department - Vinmec Central Park International General Hospital. The doctor has over 18 years of experience in the field of ultrasound - diagnostic imaging.

1. What is color Doppler ultrasound?

There are many modern ultrasound techniques such as 4-dimensional ultrasound, 5-dimensional ultrasound, Doppler ultrasound. In which, Doppler ultrasound is the most accurate technique, giving images with easy to observe color. Therefore, this method is also known as color Doppler ultrasound.
Doppler ultrasound measures blood flow in blood vessels and other body parts, helping doctors accurately diagnose the patient's health and disease status. This technique is superior to traditional ultrasound methods in its ability to measure blood flow in some organs (traditional ultrasound cannot do).

2. Advantages of color Doppler ultrasound

Color Doppler ultrasound is a modern ultrasound technique with many advantages including:
Easy to perform many times with moderate cost; Safe, painless and does not cause bleeding for the operator; High accuracy, making it easier for doctors to diagnose and detect diseases compared with other ultrasound techniques; Can detect situations occurring in hemodynamics, mode B anatomy.

3. Applications of color Doppler ultrasound

As the most modern form of ultrasound today, Doppler ultrasound is being widely used for many different subjects and diseases. Techniques are often used in the following cases:
3.1 Ultrasound diagnosis of diseases Check the functioning of the heart; Checking and detecting diseases in the abdomen and kidneys; Check the flow of veins in the body. More than 60% of cases of vascular occlusion are detected through color Doppler ultrasound; Detect an aneurysm (aortic aneurysm) in the abdomen; Check and detect problems in the heart such as heart valve regurgitation, heart valve defect,...; Detect patients who are likely to have vascular occlusion. In fact, the above diseases can be detected through other forms of examination and testing. Often, however, detection is more difficult without the use of Doppler ultrasound. In many cases, patients have to undergo many other invasive tests to confirm the disease.
3.2 Fetal ultrasound The color Doppler ultrasound technique is applied to the fetus in the last 3 months of pregnancy - when the basic body parts have formed. The technique helps measure the amount of blood, nutrients and oxygen in each part of the fetus. Ultrasound results help doctors detect the health status and development of the fetus, thereby giving advice to the mother in time to handle if unexpected cases occur (heart diseases of the fetus). fetus).
Color Doppler ultrasound for the fetus is often indicated when the mother has cirrhosis of the liver, hemodialysis, the fetus is affected by Rh antibodies, the pregnant woman has a high or low BMI. fetal heart disease,...

The benefits of color Doppler ultrasound for pregnant women include:
Determining the baby's ability to absorb nutrients and oxygen by measuring blood flow in each part of the fetus's body such as fetal heart, cord navel and brain; Diagnose the normal condition, healthy development of the fetus through observation and assessment of the blood flow in the arteries - veins; Early screening for birth defects and some pathologies of the fetus, thereby giving appropriate treatment measures; Monitor and detect early signs of fetal abnormalities, prevent the risk of low birth weight; Determine the right time for the baby to be born.

4. Procedure for performing some color Doppler ultrasound techniques

4.1 Color Doppler Ultrasound of the Abdominal Aorta Preparation: The patient is required to fast for a minimum of 7 hours for the best imaging results. Therefore, it is recommended to schedule an ultrasound in the morning to reduce discomfort from having to fast for too long. The night before, the patient should have a light meal and eat foods that are easy to digest.
Implementation: The doctor conducts the examination in the patient's supine position. The ultrasound scan can take a long time because the doctor needs to accurately measure the anterior-posterior diameter of the artery to determine if the patient is having a constriction or an aneurysm of the abdominal aorta. In some special cases, due to fat and thick abdominal wall, bloating makes it difficult for the ultrasound transducer to receive waves. The doctor may direct the patient to change position to one side to examine the liver, spleen, and kidneys.

4.2 Color Doppler ultrasound of the carotid system Preparation: The patient hardly needs to prepare anything.
Implementation: The doctor instructs the patient to lie on his back, relaxing the whole body. The doctor stands or sits on the right side of the patient, conducts ultrasound with a special transducer. Typically, the transducer starts from the neck to the angle of the jaw to examine the internal and external carotid arteries. Color Doppler ultrasound can help the doctor further evaluate the presence of atherosclerosis.
4.3 Color Doppler ultrasound of lower extremity arteries Preparation: Patients are advised not to overexert themselves before the examination to obtain the most accurate results.
Execution: The patient lies supine, straighten and relax the legs. The doctor begins to examine from the thigh down to the lower leg. The patient may be asked to flex the leg, turn the leg towards the doctor to best support the examination process.
Color Doppler ultrasound is an imaging technique that is being widely applied with many outstanding advantages. When assigned to perform this technique, patients need to follow all instructions of the doctor to ensure accurate results in the shortest time.
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