Ultrasound biosafety during pregnancy: What do operators knowin the developingworld? national survey findings from Pakistan

Objectives-The purpose of this study was to evaluate the knowledge and attitudes of ultrasound users toward safety aspects during routine obstetric examinations. Methods-Aself-administered questionnaire was given to all registered participants of the 10th AnnualInternational Radiological Conference in Karachi, Pakistan. Results-Atotal of 306 participants completed the questionnaire (response rate, 70%), including 170 consultant radiologists (55%), 90 radiology residents (30%), 31 sonographers (10%), and 15 others (5%). Themean sonography experience of the end users ± SD was 5.1 ± 5 years. Around half of the participants (45.5%) reported that there should be limitations on the use of ultrasound during low-risk pregnancy. Overall, safety knowledge was inadequate among the participants. However, those who were concerned about limitations on the use of ultrasound duringpregnancy were 2.5 times more likely to be familiar with the mechanical index (P < .001) and 1.8 times more likely to be familiar with the thermal index (P < .001). Conclusions-Increased training for professionals on safety issues of ultrasound procedures during pregnancy is needed. Furthermore, the concept of the absolute safety of ultrasound procedures without knowledge of safety parameters such as the mechanical and thermal indices needs to be changed,and more clarity is required when defining parameters under which the procedures can be safely performed.