Obstetrical ultrasounds at IRM Sud-Ouest are offered under RAMQ coverage and are free of charge. Throughout pregnancy, your health practitioner will send you for various ultrasounds to check on the health of the fetus and monitor their health and development. It is a useful tool to monitor overall health, and detect any defects that can manifest themselves during pregnancy or after delivery.

Ultrasounds are harmless to you and the baby, as they only use soundwaves to create the live images you see on screen.

A certified technician will take care of your ultrasound. He will apply some gel on your abdomen to help the ultrasound wand glide smoothly, which might be a little cold at first. He will then proceed with the examination, and you and your partner will be able to see real-time images of your baby on the monitor and the big screen. It is a painless and fast process. The radiologist will analyze the images later and provide your health practitioner with a detailed report.

You will have a total of 4 ultrasounds throughout your pregnancy:

VIABILITY/DATING

• Performed around 8 weeks, it helps provide an accurate gestational age based on fetus measurements, and check if the pregnancy is viable.
• This exam lasts 15mn.

NUCHAL TRANSLUCENCY

• This refers to a pocket of fluid behind the baby’s neck and is used to detect early signs of chromosomal abnormalities such as Trisomy 21 and Trisomy 18.
• This exam is done for around 12 weeks and lasts about 15mn.

2nd TRIMESTER

• Performed around 20 weeks, it allows your medical team to monitor fetal development. You can usually find out the gender of the baby during this test too!
• This exam lasts 30mn.

3rd TRIMESTER

• This is usually the last ultrasound before delivery. The technician will continue to check fetal development and will determine the position of the baby in the uterus to make sure they are placed adequately for birth.
• This exam lasts 30mn.

You will be followed carefully by our experienced and professional team at IRM Sud-Ouest so that you can have the most wonderful pregnancy experience possible!