Ultrasound

Vascular

Since ultrasound images are captured in real-time, they can show movement of internal tissues such as the flow of blood in veins and arteries.

The most common reason for a venous ultrasound exam is to search for blood clots, especially in the veins of the leg. These clots may break off and pass into the lungs, where they can cause a dangerous condition called pulmonary embolism. If these clots are found in time, treatments are available that can prevent this complication from occuring. Other reasons to perform a venous ultrasound study include:

• Find the cause of long-standing leg swelling. In people with varicose veins, a common condition, the valves that keep blood flowing in the right direction may not work well, and venous ultrasound can help the surgeon decide how best to deal with this condition.
• Map out the veins in the leg or arm so that segments may be removed and used to bypass an area of disease. An example is using pieces of vein from the leg to surgically bypass narrowed coronary arteries.
• Examine a blood vessel graft used for dialysis. If it is not working as expected, an area of narrowing in the graft may be responsible.

Ultrasound of the vascular system also provides a fast, noninvasive means of identifying blockages in the carotid arteries which provide blood flow to the brain. These blockages might produce mini-strokes (transient ischemic attacks or TIA’s) or complete strokes. Vascular or Doppler ultrasound is also helpful as an adjunct to regular ultrasound examinations to obtain more information about the solid organs.