New technology to see the baby

 Pregnancy ultrasound is an awesome technology. You can see your baby even before he is a baby thanks to ultrasound. There is no known risk to you or your baby from ultrasound during pregnancy. In order to produce an echo image of your pelvis, ultrasound machines use high-pitched sound waves that are transmitted through the abdominal wall and are 250 times louder than what the human ear can hear. By moving the transducer (the ultrasound transmitter) appropriately, different areas of anatomy, along with your baby, in the pelvis can be seen during pregnancy. The ultrasound technician may use a thin transducer in the vagina if it is very early in your pregnancy to better see the uterus. When you are further along in your pregnancy, ultrasound conducting gel will be placed on the lower abdomen for your ultrasound. A number of factors influence how much useful information can be gleaned from a pregnancy ultrasound examination. For instance, during fetal scans, the gestational age, maternal size and amount of amniotic fluid can limit the detail of an exam. You can find out if you are having twins or multiples, where the placenta is, how the fetal heart and limbs move, and how much amniotic fluid is present during a pregnancy ultrasound examination. In addition, measurement of various fetal parts can be made in order to estimate the age of your baby and to assure that fetal growth is normal. Seeing your baby's heartbeat, the individual hairs on her head, her rapid movements or kicks, and her profile are the most amazing parts of the pregnancy ultrasound. If you want to know the sex of your baby, you can see that too, usually at 18-20 weeks. Over the past few years, a new ultrasound technology has emerged. 3D ultrasound, often used in pregnancy, actually generates 3D pictures of your baby. Now, you can see exactly what he looks like before hes even born. Whether you know it or not, there is probably a 3D pregnancy ultrasound clinic near you. With a 3D ultrasound, your doctor may even view your pregnancy in her office!

Should a stay-at-home mom own an otoscope when taking care of her children or baby? We are all familar with the sight of our family doctor using a diagnostic tool called an otoscope to take a look into our ears when we seemingly have some ear infection, or some pain arising from the ears. That is all well when the doctor, as a physician handles that task. However, the question is, "Should a stay-at-home mom own an otoscope and perform ear examinations on her baby or children herself?" To answer that question, I researched the internet and also look at feedback from many stay-at-home moms, to tap their experience and to see what they are doing. The majority of people said "YES." Moms-at-home feel that they should take a more active role in ensuring the health of their children, rather than to have this role performed solely by their physicians. When mothers at home have access to an otoscope and are able to use it to identify potential issues in their children's ears, they feel empowered, particularly when their children are crying or tugging on their earlobes in some way. When they own an otoscope, they can use it readily to take a look into their infant’s ears to see whether it is reddish, which will suggest a ear infection just starting off and then to refer their children to their pediatric or their child specialist for further diagnosis and treatment. This gives them comfort and peace of mind that they can nab beginning ear infections in the early stages rather than finding out about these ear infections in their infants at 2 am in the hospital’s emergency rooms. Otoscopes come in different quality and at different prices. The key to a good otoscope is ensuring that the lens is powerful enough to provide good magnification, regardless of whether the model costs twenty dollars or several hundred dollars, like the Welch Allyn otoscope. Irregardless of the make or model, the majority of moms-at-home are thankful for this invention called an otoscope that is proving to be useful in helping them identify ear infections fast.