Sonograms with Every Prenatal Visit

T.- I think it definitely depends on the doctor. My doc is very skilled at ultrasound (sonogram) and performs one on nearly every visit. He keeps his machine right in the room in his office. It was not anything scheduled or at the hospital. If this is the case, there probably is not an extra charge associated with it.

Every doctor is different, even within the same practice. I am at the end of my third pregnancy and every time I have had different amounts of sonograms. Does she go to another office or is the sonogram within the OB/GYN office. My second pregnancy, the doctor had a machine right there and did it every single visit.

When I had my children 12 and 10 years ago (in New Jersey) my ob-gyn had a sonogram machine in the room... I had one formal sonogram in a different room, but every month, I had sonograms right in the room where the dr saw me... I think it is starting to be the norm.

My hospital was the same way. In four visits I had 3 sonograms, starting at 6 weeks. I started to wonder about possible negative effects from all that high intensity sound, and found this: http://www.yale.edu/opa/newsr/06-08-07-01.all.html. It's a yale study, shows brain development is affected in baby mice. In the study, they did half-hour exposures late in the term. So more than normal, but still. There are no early term studies like this. Needless to say, I am not having another single ultrasound! I didn't want to know the gender anyway. It made me so angry. I do not want the risk of autism just for them to say "yep, looks good," and charge my insurance $500. I transferred care immediately and now only see midwives at the Birthing Center in NE. The level of care is a million times better anyway.

Hi T. -

I just had a baby in January, and had to swtich OBs in the middle of my pregnancy b/c I just wasn't happy with the care I was getting from the first one. That OB did do a sonogram at every monthly visit, which I sort of found reassuring (I am 35), however I know that isn't the norm for most doctors. When I switched to the new practice, they were very surprised that the previous doctor had done that - usually sonograms are only done a couple of times throughout a pregnancy. Your SIL should definitely ask why they are doing it b/c if it isn't medically necessary then they really shouldn't do it. Also, she shouldn't be afriad to see another doctor if there are any concerns about her current one - switching OBs was the best thing I could have done as I had much more confidence in my doctor and the care I was getting afterwards. Best of luck!

It really depends on the doctor. I was high risk with my last pregnancy (my pregnancy before that resulted in a stillbirth when I was two days past due) and I had u/s at 5 weeks, 6 weeks, 8 weeks, 12 weeks, 16 weeks, 20 weeks, and every week from 26 weeks until 37 weeks when I was induced. Some u/s were tied to tests (NT Scan, Amnio, Stress tests, etc.) but I can tell you it definitely helped with my stress level and worry to see my baby regularly after my past experiences.

T.,
NO this is NOT normal. and you are right, this is the kind of stuff that is driving our medical care costs through the roof, but also the obstetric intervention and surgery rates as well.

depends on the doctors. my cousin was 15 and they kept doing them because the dr's wanted to for fun my cousin says but now that i think about it i wonder if that is just what they told her. she was young had previous miscarrages and a stressfull life. so it is probably because there is/could be something wrong or there is a high chance of something to go wrong. because like you said it can be expensive. if i were you i'd just pray for mom and baby and that everyone/thing goes right.

Ummmm... most insurance companies will NOT pay for ultrasounds that aren't medically necessary. They just won't. So if the doctor is doing one every time there is either something wrong wither *her* that she hasn't shared with you - perhaps she's had infertility issues or a number of miscarriages - or maybe the baby. Or, they could be training techs, nurses or doctors on the equipment.

I had two high risk pregnancies (I'm diabetic), accompanied by several complications. I had a very quick ultrasound with almost every visit before the heartbeat could be heard with an external monitor. Of course, after that I was having them twice a week with stress tests anyway. (Both of my kids have excellent hearing in case anyone's wondering.) Even though the baby was developing just fine and we considered everything to be normal, the ultrasounds were necessary to catch any problems as soon as possible. Honestly, not even my mother knew everything that was going on. I didn't want to burden people, scare the hell out of them, or seem like I was whining.

Ultrasounds are generally considered safe by the medical world. However, the research that has been done concerning the effects of ultrasounds on the fetus have all been in the realm of 1-4 ultrasounds per pregnancy. Having said that, there is new research being done to test the effects of ultrasounds on the unborn child. The research that has been done so far shows a strong link between ultrasounds and hearing loss when the ultrasound was done at 25 or after. The farther along you are in your pregnancy, the more of a risk it is to the baby's hearing if you do an ultrasound. All of the studies testing this are still in progress. There is also a study that will be coming out soon which will test the possible link between ultrasounds and dyslexia (as well as other biological effects that ultrasounds have on babies).

Wow! That is highly unecessary, imho. Could be because of insurance...

I just read how ultrasounds can cause lots of things to babies... (of course, unless you ask about the risks of any procedure, you will never know them, because docs won't usually offer)
search online for "ultrasound harmful?" to see for yourself!!
I trust my midwives. Doctors are wanting a window into the mother's body, which is scary... it is not 'meant' to be seen...

It may very well be necessary if she is having any complications you may not know about. But it can be dangerous if there isn't a reason (the old idea of is it more dangerous to have a lot of sonograms or to let a potential problem go unchecked) in most cases they'll do a sonogram every visit for a problem. But there are doctors now who will do one, just because you want to see your baby and that's a bad idea and is unhealthy for the baby (just like you won't get an xray once a month unless you really needed it, except for different reasons). If you're close enough with your SIL to talk to you you may want to see if everything is okay and let her know about the research out there that suggests not having frequent sonograms without medical cause. Good Luck!!

No it is not normal and yes, unnecessary tests do drive up everyone's insurance prices. That said, maybe your SIL's doctor has a good reason for doing the sonograms. Maybe there is something they are watching the baby or you SIL for, or maybe it isn't the traditional sonogram that you are thinking of.

My doc did the quick type with the heart rate and a quick look (not the regular one that requires a special appointment and lots of water) and then I had the regular one to check the baby's size. Because they noticed a small problem (with my placenta), I had to have one more later.

If you were high risk with your last pregnancy the would do a sonogram every visit to maintain baby and your health. This is done with all high risk pregnancy's. So it would be normal with your high risk with last pregnancy. Hope this helps. They are just making sure that you maintain good health for you and your baby.

Some doctors tend to do it. Insurance might not necessarily cover it and she should check to see how many hers authorizes. She might end up having to pay out of pocket for this.

With my first, my insurance only covered one. With my second, I got my care through a lay midwife who didn't do ultrasounds.

Hi T.,

What does your SIL say? Why not go with her to the Doctor and ask him questions. Good luck. D.

I think it is odd too because my OB won't do them unless they can justify it medically other than the first ultrasound and 20 week ultrasound. My sil gets 4d ultrasounbds and syas she does not pay for them but I highly doubt that is true becasue they cost 200 in VA BEach and insurance doesn't pay for it unless your pregnancy is high risk and hers is not. I agree with you and think it is odd as well but maybe it is up to the different Ob offices to decide? I don't know but i agree with your thoughts

Good Lord.... forget the "sky high insurance prices" ... how about the unneeded radiation each one of these tests deliver... So much of modern medicine is unneeded today... I question everything!!

M.

No, a sonogram every visit is not normal with a normal pregnancy.

However, if your SIL had IVF, it is a different story.

My sister had twins through IVF. She had sonograms at every visit.

I had more sonograms than I cared for with my pregnancy. I will avoid them in the future. Lots of OBs are more jumpy and order sonograms more frequently than once during a pregnancy. Yes, they have to be medically indicated, but that isn't a very high threshold.

I think it just depends on the OB; mine does it every visit, then again, my OB is in private practice and owns his own sonogram machines, including a portable one he can take to the hospital when he needs it. I am 38, so I think it does make me feel safer, but when he does a routine sono, it is really quick...not a long detailed look on the high end machines or 3-D, just a brief look to check heart rate and growth. It has been a good thing, too, as I had problems in my first pregnancy that he was able to catch pretty early, and I feel really good about him doing them this time, too. When I look at my insurance bills, it does not appear that they are being billed any particularly high rate for this procedure...I don't know that he even includes it in billing, and for sure it is not billed the way the amnio and other testing sonograms were billed, which was for a lot more.

T.,
I also had a high risk pregnancy because of my age and I developed preeclampsia. I had about 3 or 4 sonograms. Because my pregnancy was high risk my insurance carrier covered them.

I will have three, but not one every visit. I had some bleeding early on and with a history of miscarriage, the OB wanted to check on it. Then there was the NT (first trimester) screen for defects and I'll have the 20 week anatomy scan soon. I think that unless there's more going on than her doctor is telling her, it's unusual to have that many. Even my friend who went into premature labor the first time didn't have more than four.

She must have something going on if they are doing them that often. Maybe she just doesn't want anyone to know what is really going on because it can be scary. I was high risk when I was pregnant because I have lupus and I had an ultrasound done every month even though nothing ever showed up wrong with my son on the ultrasound they kept doing them just in case. He turned out perfect and I am very thankful that the doctors did what they had to do to ensure my son and I's health. As far as insurance costs, her insurance must be approving the ultrasounds because they are medically necessary. Also, just remember that each pregnancy is different and each doctor is different and pray that she has a happy healthy baby!!! :)

Hi!

Ahh, the world of OB care is quickly changing. I had my oldest in 2005, my next 2006, and am due in a month with #3. ALL were normal pregnancies, no high risk. All attended by an OB - my current OB is also the OB I used with my last. In the short amount of time I have had all three the amount of sonograms/ultrasounds has increased significantly. Most insurances allow for three, but more if medically indicated..or asked for by a Dr. I think it is going to be a common practice that u/s are done at most monthly visits in the near future.. especially with the OB's that are very Medical Intervention related. The OB's that rely less on them tend to be (from my experience) more "naturalistic" in their approach as an OB on the whole. If she hasn't, I would reccommend that your SIL ask if there is a specific reason that she is receiving them..or if it is common proactice for their office. There are, unfortunately Dr's who won't tell a patient if there is a problem.. it's always best to ask. :)

Hope she has a great rest of the pregnancy

K.

SAY NO!!!!!! That's crazy! They are making money off of you.
High frequency sound is irritaing to the baby, do you notice a lot of movemnent while the are do the sonogram? YOU have hired THEM, YOU STAY IN CONTROL! Be at peace in your heart, and follow it!

That is strange. I was also high risk, but different reasons and I didn't have one at every visit. I had 4 that were scheduled and two when I had to go to the E.R. for pre-mature labor. I know people who have multiples have more. Is she expecting twins?

Is your SIL high risk? I was very high risk with my youngest and although I didn't receive sonos with every appointment I did get them a little more than the "average" patient. Probably about 6 all together. I was seen in the office more and has NST's every day the last month of my pregnancy. (My youngest was born 5 weeks early.) If your SIL's doctor has a concern they are obligated to tell her. Otherwise it's really unnecessary.

It really depends on the doc and the insurance. My friends insurance would pay for it so her doc did one at every visit. In my practice, I know another mom that also had one at every visit. My doc wouldn't do it because my insurance would not pay him to them.

It really varies from doctor to doctor. Usually, insurance doesn't want to pay for more than 1 or 2, unless there is a problem. I also was high risk and had 1 in the OB's office, then was sent to a specialist and had 2 more. They're nice, but they are just too expensive to do just for the heck of it.

My high-risk specialist gave me sonograms at every visit as well. I think it just depends on the doc and what the insurance will pay.