What this modality answers
- Abdominal organ architecture: liver, spleen, kidneys, adrenal glands, pancreas, bladder and gastrointestinal wall layering.
- Fluid assessment: free abdominal fluid, pleural and pericardial effusion, and guidance for sampling.
- Masses and lymph nodes: size, margins, internal structure and relationship to surrounding organs.
- Reproductive and urinary tract questions, including pregnancy, prostatic disease and ureteral obstruction.
When to send a study
- Radiographs show a change you cannot characterize further.
- A patient has unexplained weight loss, vomiting, or abnormal liver or kidney values.
- You need staging information before surgery or before referring.
- Your team captured a study but wants a board-certified interpretation on record.
What to include when you submit
- Submit the full cine loops and still images as DICOM, not exported video clips.
- Sweep each organ in two planes and label the images clearly.
- Include measurements where you took them, and note patient positioning.
- Give the clinical history and the specific question, including recent bloodwork values.
Standard, STAT or Wet Read
STAT Ultrasound studies are returned within 4 hours. Standard studies are returned within 24 hours. Wet Read is the fastest option, read while you wait, answering the targeted questions you submit.
The priority is chosen case by case at submission, and every case is read by an ACVR- or ECVDI-certified radiologist. Reports place the prioritized diagnoses and recommendations first, followed by the comprehensive findings, and each case carries Real-Time Chat so a question reaches the reading radiologist in seconds. More detail is in the guide to choosing a priority.
Frequently asked questions
Can a remote radiologist interpret an Ultrasound study performed by our team?
Yes, provided the study is captured systematically. Sweeps through each organ in two planes, clear labeling and cine loops rather than isolated frozen frames give the radiologist enough to work with.
What limits an Ultrasound interpretation most often?
Incomplete coverage. A single still image of an organ shows one plane at one moment, so a finding present elsewhere in that organ is simply not in the data. Gas, body habitus and patient motion also reduce what can be stated confidently, and the report will say so when that is the case.
Do you review echocardiographic studies?
Cardiac questions are frequently best served by a cardiologist. Contact the Operations Team with the study and the question and they will confirm whether it fits a radiology read.
Should I submit Ultrasound and radiographs together?
Yes, when both exist. Reading them as one case gives the radiologist the full picture and avoids two reports that each describe half the problem.