More and more Canadian women are reportedly getting additional ultrasounds during pregnancy despite the lack of medical reasons behind such moves. There are several incidents where expecting mothers avail of these services more than three times.
This was based on a new study showing that about 1.4 million births in Ontario alone showed that about 37 percent of the mothers received three or more ultrasounds during their second and third trimesters. Current medical guidelines only recommend up to two ultrasounds for normal pregnancies.
The researchers stated that there are lesser benefits for low risk patients to go and have prenatal ultrasounds that are more than what was recommended. The study was published at the Canadian Medical Association Journal this week.
According to experts from the Society of Obstetricians and Gynecologists of Canada, ultrasounds are generally considered safe. However, multiple scans could expose the fetus to a form of energy which could be risky.
