Dopplerultraäänikuvaan

Doppler ultraäänikuvaan, often referred to as Doppler ultrasound, is a medical imaging technique that utilizes the Doppler effect to assess the flow of blood within the body. This method enhances standard ultrasound imaging by providing information about the speed and direction of blood flow in arteries and veins. The Doppler effect is the phenomenon where the frequency of a wave changes when the source of the wave is moving relative to the observer. In the context of ultrasound, sound waves are emitted by a transducer and bounce off moving red blood cells. If the blood cells are moving towards the transducer, the reflected sound waves have a higher frequency. If they are moving away, the reflected waves have a lower frequency. The ultrasound machine detects and interprets these frequency shifts.

This information is typically displayed as a color-coded overlay on a conventional grayscale ultrasound image. Different colors, such as red and blue, are used to represent blood flow in opposite directions relative to the transducer. The intensity of the color can also indicate the velocity of the blood flow, with brighter colors often signifying faster movement. Doppler ultrasound is a non-invasive procedure and is widely used in various medical specialties. It plays a crucial role in diagnosing conditions such as blood clots (thrombosis), narrowed or blocked arteries (stenosis), aneurysms, and assessing the health of fetal circulation during pregnancy. Its ability to visualize and quantify blood flow makes it an indispensable tool for clinical diagnosis and patient management.