Our services
Maternity ultrasound
About
Our maternity ultrasound departments at Queen Charlotte's & Chelsea and St Mary's hospitals perform all ultrasound scans for women that book their maternity care with the Trust. All women are offered a dating scan at around 12 weeks, with the option of Down's syndrome screening, and an anomaly scan between 18 weeks and 20 weeks and six days. Additional scans are performed at the request of your midwife or doctor for reasons that are specific to your individual pregnancy.
Last year our sonographers performed approximately 17,000 scans at Queen Charlotte's & Chelsea Hospital and approximately 10,000 scans at St Mary's Hospital.
Conditions and treatments
Ultrasound scans use high-frequency sound waves to produce pictures of your baby inside the womb. This is done by building up pictures from the return of sound waves as they bounce back from resistance they meet within your body.
Ultrasound waves are sent to and from the body using a handheld sensor (transducer), which is moved over the surface of your abdomen. The scans are painless and do not involve x-rays. The sonographer will explain the findings of your scan to you and there is a secondary monitor so that you and your partner can view your scan. You can also purchase an image of your baby to take home.
In addition to our regular maternity ultrasound scans, we offer 3D/4D scans of your baby, which offer moving images of your baby. Please note that there is a charge associated with this additional service.
Further online resources
Contact
- Queen Charlotte’s & Chelsea Hospital
- 020 3313 3916
- St Mary’s Hospital
- 020 3312 5446
- Maternity helpline
- 020 3312 6135
Latest news See all news
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Read the full storyResearch into leading cause of stillbirth awarded £2.4 million funding
Researchers and clinicians at the Trust have been awarded over £2.4 million to investigate the best technique to manage poor growth in babies during the later stages of pregnancy. The study will be led by the head of fetal medicine at Imperial…
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Read the full storyImproved quality ratings for critical care and children and young people services plus London’s first ‘outstanding’ rating for maternity care
National inspectors have improved their quality ratings for a range of Trust services including awarding the first ‘outstanding’ rating for a maternity unit in London.
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Read the full storyNew device brings breathing support to maternity patients
Maternity ward patients at Queen Charlotte’s & Chelsea Hospital can breathe easy thanks to a brand-new device providing non-invasive respiratory support to patients in the High Dependency Unit.
