Prenatal Portraits At The Mall - ALERT!
Moms View Message Board: General Discussion: Archive October 2004:
Prenatal Portraits At The Mall - ALERT!
Prenatal Portraits At The Mall
Penelope Patsuris, 07.29.04, 3:00 PM ET
NEW YORK - Recreational medical imaging has arrived.
Retail outfits with names like Fetal Fotos and Little Sprout Imaging are popping up in malls around the country, offering mothers-to-be the chance to get prenatal portraits of their unborn children using ultrasound. The scans, which cost between $100 and $300, are not covered by insurance.
The medical community and the U.S. Food and Drug Administration are not happy about this, and they're kicking up a fuss. Although these shops often require customers to have a prescription--exact requirements vary by state--many doctors contend that the practice blurs the lines between medicine and amusement. The FDA has safety concerns and formally disapproves of the practice but has little power to ban it.
These commercial ultrasound outfits are performing 3-D ultrasounds using machines made by companies like General Electric, Philips Electronics and Siemens. Customers get a "keepsake" disc with the images, and many will even give families videos or DVDs that are set to music.
Most doctors' offices still use ultrasound machines that take 2-D images. 2-D ultrasound looks inside a developing baby to check that things like the organs and spine are developing properly. Newer 3-D machines create an image of the baby's surface, outlining facial features, fingers and tiny toes. The 3-D machines can also do the 2-D procedure that lets doctors assess the baby's health.
"As part of an ultrasound exam, it's reasonable to give the woman a picture, whether it's 2-D or 3-D, without any charge" says Frank A. Chervenak, the chairman of the department of obstetrics and gynecology at the Weill Medical College of Cornell University. And most doctors do. But until 3-D arrives in more doctors' offices, there is an opportunity for some to make a buck.
Sherry McClung, the co-owner of the Plano, Tex.-based outfit First Glimpse, says she saw a business opportunity when her pregnant daughter had pictures taken at Fetal Photos in Frisco, Tex.
"We wanted to know the sex of the baby, and her doctor couldn't tell for sure, so she wanted to get more pictures done," says McClung. First Glimpse, which is located in a medical building, also houses McClung's Tiny Toes Boutique, which sells frames and baby blankets. First Glimpse won't do an ultrasound without a doctor's prescription, and it has a medical director whom McClung says oversees the practice. A licensed sonographer performs the ultrasounds.
"Doctors are checking to see if the baby is healthy," she says. "We give parents the opportunity to bond with the baby. They get to see those little faces."
Parents are often delighted, but not always. Dr Lawrence Platt, who runs the Los Angeles Center for Fetal Medicine and Women's Ultrasound Platt, says that he's seen patients who've gone to these storefronts only to learn of their child's abnormality from a staff that's not trained to provide the appropriate counseling. He's also seen women who have had commercial untrasounds that have missed abnormalities. "No professional organization supports the use of ultrasound for non-medical purposes," says Platt.
The FDA can't do much besides issue guidelines, because it regulates the manufacturers who make these machines and not those who operate them. That's left to individual states, and the laws vary. New York has introduced legislation that would ban the practice and California is considering a law that would require storefronts to notify customers that the FDA disapproves of non-medicial ultrasounds.
A GE spokewoman says that it only sells its machines to licensed physicians and facilities that contractually agree that they'll only be used for medical purposes. "But we can't control customers who sell the equipment to unrelated third parties," she says. Indeed, First Glimpse owner McClung says she got her machine via a doctor in California.
Doctors caution that although ultrasound equipment has been proven safe when used judiciously, it is not a camera. "An ultrasound is not a baby picture," says Chervenak. "That's an external picture. Ultrasounds penetrate the baby with sound waves, which are a form of energy." He adds that ultrasounds should be administered like antiobiotics or cough medicine to pregnant women: only when truly necessary.
While he and his peers are not happy about prenatal portraits, they expect this trend will end when 3-D becomes mainstream in medicine. "At that point," says Chervenak, "the opportunity for these places in malls will be significantly diminished."
Hmmm....I guess I just don't see the big deal.
It's up to every individual if they want to get one of these done.
I have a good friend that found out the sex of her baby at the mall. (had her routine ultrasound at the doctors office......doctor couldn't tell the sex at that time) She said it was really neat. She got to see all the "fun" stuff going on inside of her instead of just the medical stuff. It cost her $75.00.
I love ultrasounds photos.
It probably isn't a big deal if everything is fine with the baby. The problem is when the mall ultrasound finds something wrong with the baby. With my oldest daughter, I had one done in the doctor's office and the sonographer could not see all the chambers of the heart-so I was referred to a specialist. Everything turned out okay, but when the sonographer first told me something may be wrong, I was in tears. How would you like someone at the mall telling you there may be something wrong with your baby? I just don't really like looking at other peoples ultrasound photos anyways-it was special to see my babies before they were born, but that's enough for me.
Well routinely, the first ultrasound is done at the doctors office anyway. These "other" places recommend that you come in after 20 weeks.
So, in my life, the doctor would do the first ultrasound. Then, I could go later on for another ultrasound at one of these places. And, if they, at that time, found a problem...then I guess I would be grateful if anything. I would go right back to the doctor ASAP and see what was going on and what could be done.
I guess it just depends on the individual. Of course it shouldn't take the place of a doctor.
I can see how mothers would want to have one of these, especially if their U/S performed in their OB's office was inconclusive as to the sex of the baby. But, I really have *bad* feelings about these being done in malls, for the simple reason that *IF* there is a problem with the baby - abnormalities, deformaties, etc., it would be very traumatic for the mother to find out in that setting, without qualified medical personnel available for information, explanations and counseling.
Sure, you go into that, supposedly aware that you *might* find out something alarming, but honestly, how many people really expect that to happen? I would say very few, if any. So the woman is totally not prepared for *bad* news, and IMO a mall setting just isn't the place for it.
And I have to wonder, in this age of frivolous lawsuits, what the implications might be if something were discovered in the U/S? Don't get me wrong, I personally think there would be no grounds for one, but you just never know with people today............
This rubs me the wrong way. It comes off to me as opportunistic and driven only by the desire to latch on to a "get rich quick" scheme. I can see the advertisments now: Make money fast! Have ultrasound parties! Minimum start-up, double your money in a matter of weeks! All right, I'm being sarcastic, but that's the first thing I thought when I read the article.
"many doctors contend that the practice blurs the lines between medicine and amusement."
I agree. I don't know how you would be sure that the person doing the scan is experienced or competent enough to perform the ultrasound. At least in a doctor's office or clinic certain requirements need to be met in order to operate one of these machines. I guess it comes down to whether you feel it is a medical procedure that should be performed in a controlled setting, or an just an expensive way to find out your baby's sex.
I guess if you are aware that there is a possibility that you might see something on the screen that could indicate a problem with the baby and you are ok with that....than I really don't think this is a big deal at all.
Get rich quick sceme...I think that is about right, but hey... someone started selling bottled water too!! LOL
Even though I don't know if this is something that I would ever do, I don't think that there is really anything wrong with it for those that want pictures taken before the baby is born!! I would like to see one of these to see how the photo differs from a regular US photo.
Vicki, the 3D photos are really neat. Like a sepia toned polaroid of your baby while it's still inside. My cousin's dh works for GE teaching techs and drs how to use this machine and when she was pregnant with her last child they did one of these and sent me the pictures. It is really, really neat how clear they are.
That said, I do not agree with having people performing US outside of the dr office. This is a medical proceedure and should stay within the medical profession.
On top of all the concerns mentioned already there appears to be a possible health risk as well. That alone would be enough to make me wary.
"Doctors caution that although ultrasound equipment has been proven safe when used judiciously, it is not a camera. "An ultrasound is not a baby picture," says Chervenak. "That's an external picture. Ultrasounds penetrate the baby with sound waves, which are a form of energy." He adds that ultrasounds should be administered like antiobiotics or cough medicine to pregnant women: only when truly necessary."
I never had an US when pregnant with DD. That particular OB/GYN practice did not do them routinely, only if absolutely necessary.
At first thought, I'm not particularly against them. Then I started thinking back to my pregnancy. I had 3 or 4 ultrasounds, because of the twins, and high risk. Each time, I felt faint, over-heated, nauseous, and frequently threw up during them. The doctors said this was because I was getting poor blood supply while laying on my back, and it always subdued when I sat up. Point is, what if you faint? An US tech is not a doctor, what if you get ill? I love the idea of a 3D US, but people don't weigh the risks against the benefits!!
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