Ultrasound scans may be used to:
- Confirm your due date, by measuring the size of your foetus
- Confirm if you might be carrying more than one baby
- Check for any intrauterine device that may have been placed as a birth control method
- Monitor the growth of your baby
- Detect any abnormalities of the foetus
- Offer a window to the womb during an amniocentesis or chronic villus sampling
- Measure the amount of amniotic fluid in the womb
- May detect the source of any abnormal uterine blood loss
- Check for a molar or ectopic pregnancy, or a miscarriage in case there is no movement of the foetus by the 22nd week, or if the movement has stopped.
- In some cases, determining the baby’s sex. Although, the accuracy of this highly depends on the position of the baby and the skills of the person conducting the ultrasound
- Access the condition of the placenta if the baby is small
- Determine the state of the cervix, if by any chance it has started premature dilation