If you intend to become a sonographer, gather here as I bring to your knowledge the free online obstetric ultrasound courses that you can enroll in and learn all about fetal development in pregnant women.
Pregnancy is the period in a woman’s life when she experiences lots of things due to bodily and hormonal changes, and as a result, this period is a very sensitive one that needs all the care that can be provided for the proper development of the embryo to a fetus and finally to be given birth to as a child.
During the period of pregnancy, the woman goes to the hospital at specific intervals to check if the fetus is growing and developing well. The development of a fetus greatly depends on how the mother is taking care of herself. The food she eats, what she drinks, her hygiene, and her environment will affect the fetus positively or negatively.
This is why antenatal visits to the hospital are important in every trimester of the pregnancy. One of the things that pregnant women go to the clinic to check for is what is called obstetric ultrasound. Obstetric ultrasound also known as prenatal or pregnancy ultrasound, uses high-frequency sound waves to produce images of a developing embryo or fetus.
The procedure also monitors the health of the mother’s uterus, ovaries, and the blood flow through the umbilical cord to the placenta. The information obtained from the obstetric ultrasound is used by the sonographer in charge to track pregnancy progress, and gestational age and help predict delivery dates. There are many reasons why pregnant women go for obstetrics ultrasound, some of which are;
- Confirm fertilization, implantation, and the presence of an embryo
- Monitor fetal development
- Check for congenital disabilities, hereditary conditions, or abnormalities
- Identify whether it is a single or multiple pregnancy
- Check the amount of amniotic fluid around the fetus
- Estimate the fetus’s age and the due date
- Evaluate the position of the fetus and placenta in relation to the birth canal
Obstetric ultrasound scans is of various types based on the stages of pregnancy. The scans are as follows;
Dating Scan
Dating ultrasound scans, also known as early ultrasounds, are typically the first type of obstetric evaluation during pregnancy. These ultrasound scans are usually performed between 7 and 12 weeks of pregnancy.
First-Trimester Combined Screening (FTS)
FTS is a test for chromosome conditions and congenital disabilities. It is available to all women between 11 and 13 weeks plus six days of pregnancy. With FTS, two measurements are used, together with your age, to estimate your chance of having a baby with Down syndrome, trisomy 18, or trisomy 13. The first measurement is the nuchal translucency (NT) measurement, taken by ultrasound, and the second is a blood test.
Nuchal Translucency (NT) Measurement
NT ultrasound exams are performed between 11 weeks and 13 weeks plus six days of pregnancy. During an NT exam, your sonographer will measure the fluid at the back of the fetus’s neck (called nuchal translucency). All Fetuses have some fluid here. Fetuses with Down syndrome are more likely to have an increased amount of fluid. The NT ultrasound also:
- Confirms that the baby has a consistent heartbeat
- Confirms your dates
- Diagnoses a multiple pregnancy
- Checks for other congenital disabilities
Anatomy Scan
Anatomy ultrasounds happen during the second trimester, usually around the 18- to 22-week mark. Sometimes these scans are referred to as a level-two ultrasound or the 20-week anatomy scan. The anatomy scan is usually the most memorable obstetric ultrasound for parents because it is the first time they get to see their baby.
Biophysical Profile (BPP)
A BPP ultrasound is commonly performed any time after 28 weeks of pregnancy, in the third trimester. The goal of a BPP ultrasound is to assess fetal well-being leading up to the estimated delivery date. This precautionary exam monitors the supply of oxygen to your baby. If oxygen is ever compromised, your doctor may induce labor or consider a Caesarean section to protect your baby.
That being said, online classes have shaped the way we receive education in our modern world, whether it is to learn how to breastfeed or online books a pregnant mother can read. You just get the luxury of it from the comfort of your home.
Some midwives and nurses don’t have to go a long distance before they can grab one or two nursing courses online. And, you can do the same in these free online obstetric ultrasound courses. Without further ado let’s delve into the free online obstetric ultrasound courses available for both expectant mothers and intending sonographers to enroll in.
Free online obstetric ultrasound courses
The free online obstetric ultrasound courses that are available will be listed and discussed in this section. They are as follows;
- Certificate in Basic Ultrasound for Obstetrics and Gynaecology (Ireland)
- Obstetric Ultrasound Lectures
- USG – Obstetric Ultrasound
- Basic Pregnancy Ultrasound Course
- Basic Training Online | Obstetric Ultrasound
1. Certificate in Basic Ultrasound for Obstetrics and Gynaecology (Ireland)
This online course combines theoretical and practical learning focusing on clinical experiential learning and has been designed to provide flexibility to suit heavy clinical workloads. It incorporates online modules and assessments, Objective Structured Assessments for Technical Skills (OSATS), and ultrasound cases.
Furthermore, the course is structured to help you balance the workload in the clinic and participating in the course. This course will teach you to effectively select ultrasound equipment that is best for an examination, and how to operate it.
You will also learn to define the morphological features of a normal early pregnancy, and you’ll be able to diagnose early pregnancy abnormalities, miscarriage, and ectopic pregnancy. This is one of the free online obstetric ultrasound courses that will teach you a lot of things, and it is an interactive course.
This course is mandatory for doctors undertaking Basic Specialist Training in Obstetrics and Gynaecology. This is an interactive online course, delivered through our online learning environment RCPI Brightspace, and supported by real-life implementation of the acquired skills, measured by OSATS.
2. Obstetric Ultrasound Lectures
This free online obstetric ultrasound course has 12 Ultrasound YouTube videos. You’ll easily learn about obstetric Doppler, where your lecturer will be sharing some principles guiding Doppler, uterine artery Doppler.
You’ll also learn about umbilical artery Doppler, middle cerebral artery Doppler, and ductus venosus Doppler. In the second lecture, you will learn important ultrasound signs, including intradecidual sac sign, double decidual sac sign, empty amnion sign, expanded amnion sign, diamond ring sign, double bleb sign, etc
In the third lecture, you’ll learn 6 steps to basic fetal ultrasound examination, in the fourth lecture you will learn everything you need to know about the chorionic bump. In the final classes, you will then learn about ultrasound of normal early pregnancy, and early pregnancy failure (a simplified ultrasound approach).
3. USG – Obstetric Ultrasound
This is one of the free online obstetric ultrasound courses that have 15 Obstetric Ultrasound YouTube videos. It will start by teaching you fetal abdominal abnormalities where you will learn to review normal fetal abdominal anatomy.
You will learn gastrointestinal tract and its anomalies, and abdominal and ventral wall defects, you’ll see a list of common abdominal masses detected in utero, and you’ll discuss common variants. In the second class, you’ll learn about the Doppler examination of the detailed heart.
The course instructor, Jill Beithon, a registered Sonographer, will teach you how blood flows through the detailed heart in this second lecture video. She will also teach you color dopplers, and how color can help you in obstetric ultrasound.
In the third lecture, you will learn about fetal anomalies, where Ahmed Al-malt the course instructor will be handling you in this class. For you to even know how the abnormal fetal abdomen looks, you need to know how the normal abdomen looks.
The course instructor will also teach you some abdominal wall defects such as; Gastroschisis, Omphalocele, Body Stalk Anomaly, and Exstrophy. In the fourth class, you’ll learn about fetal heart case studies, while you’ll learn part 1 of fetal heart screening in the fifth video.
in the last class, you will learn about the OB fetal survey, where your instructor Jane J.K. Burns the course instructor will teach you about Fetal Environmental, Biometric, and Anatomic Surveys.
4. Basic Pregnancy Ultrasound Course
This is one of the free online obstetric ultrasound courses that is offered by the University of Washington that takes 2 weeks to complete. With ultrasound, sonography can identify if there is any complication with the pregnancy that might put the mother or the fetus at risk.
This course was created to train healthcare workers to perform basic pregnancy ultrasound in parts of the world where formal training is not available. It includes videos and other educational materials designed to be used in a 2-week ultrasound course.
The hands-on sessions in the trainer’s guide are essential components of the course and must be supervised by an experienced ultrasound practitioner. The first video welcomes and introduces you to the course. Where your instructor will show you the topics you’ll be learning in this course such as;
- How ultrasound works
- How you can effectively use ultrasound equipment
- How you can see the anatomy of the fetus in the 1s, 2nd, and 3rd trimesters.
- You to use ultrasound to determine pregnancy dating
- Finally, how to know the normal and abnormal appearance of the placenta, cervix, and amniotic fluid.
The instructor will also show you other topics that will be learned in this course. In the last video, you’ll see a sonographer that is practically scanning a pregnant patient. You will see how she made her patient comfortable during the examination, how she measured the detailed biometry and amniotic fluid index, and how she performed the ROBUST scan. This is one of the free online obstetric ultrasound courses that you’ll be given a handbook that has to do with all the materials you’ll need to successfully complete the course.
When you’re done with the course you’ll be assessed, to know how much of the knowledge you grabbed. The University of Washington advised that you take at least 40 hours of scanning experience with a sonographer monitoring you before undertaking unsupervised scanning.
5. Basic Training Online | Obstetric Ultrasound
The Basic Training Online Program is the theoretical component of Basic Training. It is available on demand in the ISUOG Academy which is the online learning platform. It provides a comprehensive introduction to essential topics on ultrasound in obstetrics and gynecology, taking you through a systematic approach to the scan. On completion of the program you will have the knowledge needed to perform an unsupervised ultrasound scan, and be confident to recognise when a patient needs to be referred.
The Basic Training Online Program is designed to support your practice through demonstrations, examples, clear step by step instructions and guides as well as text, illustrations, and lectures from leaders in the field. Delivered in 30 fully interactive online courses, offering you opportunities to check your knowledge as you learn, to provide you with the essential foundation for using ultrasound in obstetrics and gynecology.
You will be given 12 months access to the content from when you first enrol on the course. On passing the 1 hour assessment at the end of the program, you will gain the ISUOG Certificate of Completion and Achievement, along with 30 CME credits. It is perfect for anyone who wants to develop a sound foundation for your future in ultrasound for obstetrics and gynecology.
Conclusion
All these free online obstetric ultrasound courses are available for you to enroll in and learn.
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