What are the benefits of opting for an ultrasound during pregnancy?

Some benefits include: To check your baby’s age and growth. This helps your provider figure out your due date. To check your baby’s heartbeat, muscle tone, movement and overall development To check to see if you’re pregnant with twins, triplets or more (also called multiples) To check if your baby is in the heads-first position before birth To examine your ovaries and uterus (womb). Ovaries are where eggs are stored in your body. Ultrasound is also used for screening for birth defects, like spina bifida or heart defects. After an ultrasound, your provider may want to do more tests, called diagnostic tests, to see for sure if your baby has a birth defect. Birth defects are health conditions that a baby has at birth. Birth defects change the shape or function of one or more parts of the body. They can cause problems in overall health, in how the body develops, or in how the body works. To help with other prenatal tests, like chorionic villus sampling (also called CVS) or amniocentesis (also called amnio). CVS is when cells from the placenta are taken for testing. The placenta is tissue that provides nutrients for your baby. Amnio is a test where amniotic fluid and cells are taken from the sac around your baby. Ultrasound is also used in checking for pregnancy complications, including ectopic pregnancy, molar pregnancy and miscarriage.