Ultrasound relies on sound waves to create images of your internal organs. Ultrasound if often used to image the liver, gallbladder, kidneys, thyroid, uterus/ovaries, testicles, arteries and veins. Pregnancy is also monitored with ultrasound.

What do I need to do to prepare for the exam?

Imaging of the abdomen requires fasting for 4-6 hours.

What can I expect during an ultrasound?  

A probe is placed on the area to be imaged and the exam is painless. Most studies take between 15-30 minutes.

Females undergoing pelvic ultrasound will initially need to have a full bladder for imaging performed with the ultrasound probe on your abdomen. 

A vaginal probe is often used to provide high quality images of the uterus and ovaries. Most people do not experience pain with this procedure. The information gained from transvaginal imaging is critical in making many diagnoses.

For more information on specific procedures performed by our interventional radiologists, please refer to: radiologyinfo.org.