Acceptability by patients of transvaginal sonography in the elective assessment of the first-trimester fetus

Abstract

The acceptability of transvaginal sonography (TVS) for visualization of first-trimester fetal anatomy was investigated in 160 women sequentially attending a routine dating scan clinic at 12-13 weeks' gestation. All women underwent transabdominal sonography (TAS) in the first instance to assess gestational age. Of these women, 88.1% agreed to undergo TVS. The main reasons for declining were fear of miscarriage (42.1%) and discomfort (36.8%). With TVS, 51.8% described no discomfort, 47.5% mild and 0.7% marked discomfort. Of the women who underwent TVS, 95% said that they would have no concerns about a further TVS in another pregnancy. Of those women who had previously had TVS (11.9%), all agreed to have TVS in this pregnancy and experienced significantly less concern about the procedure than did those who had never had TVS before. TAS was associated with discomfort and inconvenience only if women tried to fill their bladder prior to the scan. In conclusion, TVS is acceptable and well tolerated by an unselected pregnant population. Acceptability rates for TVS should improve as its use becomes more widespread.