Tips for your appointment

We welcome you for your medical ultrasound or scan on request/for fun at Het Echocentrum. Ultrasounds take place by appointment, at one of our pleasant locations in Amstelveen or Amsterdam Buitenveldert. Also read the detailed information on medical ultrasounds and pretechos.

General tips for your appointment

• We ask that you be on time for your appointment and drop off any application form (referral) at the front desk.
• Are you unexpectedly late for your appointment? Then the ultrasound technician will see if your ultrasound can still go ahead, otherwise we will reschedule.
• Do you have a navel piercing? This may damage the equipment, we request that you remove the piercing at home.
• Do you have a latex allergy? If so, please report this to the ultrasound technician before the ultrasound begins.
• We ask that you put your phone on silent and do not film or photograph during the medical ultrasounds.
• You will receive one or more photos of your unborn baby after the ultrasound. It is good to know that lamination damages the photo beyond repair.
• In our ultrasound center we regularly supervise students who are undergoing ultrasound training. They watch the examination or perform the examination under the supervision of the ultrasound technician. Do you object to this? If so, feel free to mention this to the receptionist or ultrasound technician.

Getting a medical ultrasound: tips

• At your appointment we would like to receive the application form you received from your referring midwife or gynecologist.
• A filled bladder is desirable for all ultrasounds we perform between the 10th and 15th week of your pregnancy. Urinate thoroughly about 1 hour before appointment and then drink two to three glasses of water. This allows the ultrasound technician to get a better view of your baby.
• In principle, an ultrasound in early pregnancy (up to 10 weeks) is always internal (vaginal), unless the ultrasound technician decides otherwise. The ultrasound technician will assess whether the internal or external ultrasound will give the best result and discuss this with you prior to the examination.
• For screening ultrasounds, you may not bring children into the ultrasound room. This is for a number of reasons. For example, the echo chamber is dark, which children may find scary, or they may get bored. As a result, you and your partner can no longer relax watching the images and listening to the explanations. It also affects the quality of the examination by preventing the ultrasound technician from concentrating optimally. In addition, it is possible that we may identify an anomaly. You will be told this during the examination, raising questions and emotions. In our experience, children find it difficult to be involved in this.
• You may bring 1 adult to a medical screening ultrasound.
• You will be given 2 photos of your baby after the medical ultrasound. A video or DVD recording is not possible with these ultrasounds.

Getting a scan for fun: tips

• A filled bladder is desirable for all ultrasounds we perform between the 10th and 15th week of your pregnancy. Please urinate thoroughly about 1 hour before your visit and then drink two to three glasses of water. This allows the sonographer to get a better view of your baby.
• It is always possible for the pretecho to fail, for example, because your baby is not positioned properly for it.
  – Only if the gender is not visible after an ultrasound after 15 weeks, we will repeat this ultrasound at another time free of charge. Unfortunately, we can never guarantee the outcome.
  – For an ultrasound on request after 24 weeks, we try to take a photo in 3D. However, we cannot guarantee this. Unfortunately, this ultrasound cannot be repeated free of charge. You can choose to repeat the ultrasound later by paying the same amount again.
• If we notice any abnormal findings, we will inform you about this. However, for ultrasounds on request, no measurements are normally taken and no screening is performed for the health of the baby.

Professional medical or scan on request in Amstelveen or Amsterdam?

We are happy to welcome you at one of our locations in Amstelveen or Amsterdam Buitenveldert!