Midwives' and obstetricians' views on appropriate obstetric sonography in Norway.

Sex Reprod Healthc

National Center for Fetal Medicine, Trondheim University Hospital, Trondheim, Norway; Department of Laboratory Medicine, Children's and Women's Health, Norwegian University of Science and Technology, Trondheim, Norway.

Published: June 2018

AI Article Synopsis

  • The study aimed to explore midwives' and obstetricians' opinions on the number of ultrasound exams during pregnancy in Norway.
  • A survey was sent to 400 healthcare professionals across five health regions, covering attitudes toward ultrasound frequency, non-medical use, commercialization, and safety.
  • Results showed that while most supported the standard recommendation of one ultrasound, those who regularly used ultrasound were more likely to desire additional exams, with a significant portion believing women expect ultrasounds even when not medically necessary.

Article Abstract

Introduction: The primary aim of this study was to investigate midwives' and obstetricians' views on how many ultrasound examinations should be part of standard care during pregnancy in Norway.

Material And Methods: This study is a part of a larger study, the CROss-Country Ultrasound Study (CROCUS), an international investigation of midwives' and obstetricians' experiences of and views on the use of ultrasound. We distributed 400 questionnaires to respondents in all five health regions in Norway: 40 to municipal midwives, 180 to midwives working in hospitals and 180 to obstetricians. The questionnaire included specific questions about the appropriate number of examinations during pregnancy, examinations without medical indication, non-medical ultrasound, commercialisation and safety.

Results: The response rate was 45%. Of the respondents, 58% reported satisfaction with the offer of one scheduled ultrasound examination during pregnancy, as recommended in the Norwegian guidelines. Health care professionals who used ultrasound themselves were significantly more likely to want to offer more ultrasound examinations: 52% of the ultrasound users wanted to offer two or more ultrasound examinations vs. 16% of the non-users (p < .01). The majority of obstetricians (80%) reported that pregnant women expect to undergo ultrasound examination, even in the absence of medical indication.

Conclusion: The majority of Norwegian health care professionals participating in this study supported the national recommendation on ultrasound in pregnancy. Ultrasound users wanted to offer more ultrasound examinations during pregnancy, whereas non-users were generally content with the recommendation. The majority of respondents thought that commercialisation was not a problem at their institution, and reported that ultrasound is often performed without a medical indication. The ultrasound users thought that ultrasound is safe.

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Source
http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.srhc.2017.12.006DOI Listing

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