Are ultrasounds safe during pregnancy?

I have been reading up a bit on ultrasound scans during pregnancy. For both of my pregnancies, I've only had one. It was at 20 weeks and called the "Fetal anatomy scan". For Tucker's pregnancy, my doctor said I should only "need" one during my pregnancy if everything progressed normally. I didn't need one in the 1st trimester because I knew when my last menstrual cycle was and had multiple positive pregnancy tests, so there was no need to "verify the pregnancy" by ultrasound. I'm so thankful that I had a doctor who was more hands on, and didn't rely on or force ultrasound technology. Not only is it expensive ($700 at Dean clinic in Madison!!!), but I later discovered that it sends sound waves to the fetus and can potentially cause physiological effects. Although there is no hard evidence yet, there is a lot of controversy over the necessity and safety of ultrasound technology during pregnancy. 


Of course, there are high risk situations where ultrasound is very necessary, throughout the entire pregnancy. Where the benefits outweigh the risks. I'm more referring to low risk pregnancies.


I have plenty of friends who tell me that they've had an ultrasound as early as 6 weeks, to "verify the pregnancy". I'm curious why their doctors are performing these scans so early in the pregnancy, even though the woman knows when her last menstrual cycle was and the pregnancy seems to be low risk so far? 


The following text is found from an article I found from an MD: http://www.drbenkim.com/articles-ultrasound-pregnancy.html. There are plenty more resources out there, this is just one example.


"These sound waves are capable of producing the following physiological effects:

-Increase in blood flow and temperature in local tissues
-Production of gas bubbles that can put pressure on local tissues
-Mechanical effects like movement of the fluid that surrounds your cells, which can also put pressure on local tissues

Before you allow ultrasound scanning to be performed during pregnancy, please consider the following points:


-Ultrasound scanning of pregnant women has been shown to significantly increase the likelihood of miscarriage, preterm labor, and even infant mortality. 

-Pregnant physiotherapists who provided ultrasound treatments for more than 20 hours per week were found to have an increased risk for spontaneous abortions. 

-One of the reasons used to support ultrasound scanning for pregnant women is that it can help to diagnose a condition called placental praevia. This is a condition where the placenta is implanted in the lower part of a woman's uterus, which can cause bleeding in the third trimester and increase her chance of being encouraged to have a cesarean section. A study of 4000 women found that of 250 women who were scanned and diagnosed with placental praevia, only 4 actually had placental praevia upon delivery. Who knows how many unnecessary cesareans have been done and how much needless anxiety women have experienced due to incorrect diagnoses of placental praevia wiith ultrasound? 

-Using ultrasound scanning to detect serious problems before birth does not necessarily save lives or reduce illness. There is evidence to suggest that using ultrasound to attempt to detect problems while a baby is in the womb can do more harm than good. 

-There is evidence to support that children who have been exposed to ultrasound while in their mothers' bellies have a greater chance of suffering from dyslexia and other speech and learning problems than children who have not been exposed to ultrasound."

 I decided with both my pregnancies, that I did want at least one ultrasound to make sure the placenta was in the right spot and to be prepared if there was something wrong with my baby. Just my personal choice. 

I'm not saying that I believe everything this particular doctor has to say. There is still a lot of research to be done.This is just something to be aware of and think about. It shouldn't cause you fear. I found this topic very interesting and was just recently made aware of it. It never hurts to question things. Remember, you have a choice and cannot be forced into anything you don't feel comfortable with :)