Ultrasonography, also called Ultrasound Scanning, is a diagnostic procedure that exposes a body part to high-frequency sound waves to produce real-time images of internal organs, including blood vessels, and their movement within the body that are not visualized on conventional radiography. It is a painless and non-invasive imaging method that can help provide relevant information for the diagnosis of various diseases.
Ultrasound, which uses water-based gel and a medical probe to transmit high-frequency sound waves, is known to be safe and does not use ionizing radiation.
Doppler Ultrasound is a special technique that can be part of an ultrasound examination. It evaluates the blood flow in arteries and veins in various regions of the body including the abdomen, brain, extremities, and neck.
Services Offered:
Common Ultrasound Procedures (Non-Vascular):
- Chest
- Endocavitary (Transrectal Pelvic, Transrectal Prostate, Transvaginal/Endovaginal)
- Kidney, Ureters, and Urinary Bladder (KUB), Prostate, Scrotal, Routine Pelvic (Ovaries, Prostate, Uterus)
- Musculoskeletal
- Neonatal Transcranial
- Neck, Parathyroid, Thyroid
- Whole Abdomen (Abdominal Aorta, Biliary Tree, Gallbladder, Kidneys, Liver, Ovaries, Pancreas, Prostrate, Spleen, Urinary Bladder, Uterus)
Ultrasound-Guided Interventional Procedures:
- Cyst Aspiration
- Fine Needle Aspiration
- Intravenous Catheter Insertion
- Paracentesis
Involves the insertion of a needle or catheter into the peritoneal cavity, which is the area between the abdominal wall and the spine. It is performed to obtain a sample or remove excess fluid (ascites) for both diagnostic and therapeutic purposes. The sample may be examined to determine the cause of fluid accumulation, as well as to evaluate for possible infection or presence of cancer. Therapeutically, it relieves respiratory difficulty due to increased intra-abdominal pressure caused by the ascites.
- Percutaneous Biopsy (Abdominal and Retroperitoneal Masses, Kidney, Liver, Thyroid)
Medical procedure that involves taking a small sample of tissue for examination. Biopsy helps determine if a tissue sample is malignant (cancerous) and identify the cause of an unexplained infection or inflammation.
Involves the puncturing of the pleural (fluid-filled) space between the lungs and the chest wall using a needle. It is used to drain the excess fluid (pleural effusion) to improve a patient’s respiratory symptoms and to collect a sample for testing.
Vascular Procedures:
- Doppler Ultrasound is a vascular test used to assess problems in blood vessels and the blood flow in various organs, as well as evaluate tumors and congenital vascular malformations.
- Carotid Doppler
- Color Doppler (Arteriovenous (AV) Graft, Gyne, Iliac Artery, Lower Extremities Bilateral Veins/Arteries, Neck/Cervical Lymph Nodes, Radial Artery, Scrotum/Testes/Testicles, Thyroid, Transrectal Prostate, Transvaginal/Endovaginal, Upper Extremities Bilateral Veins/Arteries, Vein Portal)
Other Procedures:
- Strain (Static or Compression)
Qualitative technique that provides information on the relative stiffness between tissues when another force is applied
Quantitative technique that provides the estimated value of the stiffness of the tissue
- Fibroscan (Transient Elastography)
Simple, rapid, non-invasive method to measure the stiffness of the liver. The procedure involves placing a probe between the ribs on the right side of the lower chest wall and delivering a low-frequency pulse or shear wave to a small volume of liver tissue.
Chairperson of the Department of Radiology:
Jackson U. Dy, MD
Section Head:
Blaise K. Liao, MD
