What is a Vascular Ultrasound (Doppler) Scan?
Unlike regular Ultrasound, this is a specialist scan that assesses the blood vessels in the body, such as arteries and veins. The test uses ‘Doppler’ ultrasound combined with conventional Bmode (grey scale) ultrasound. Bmode is the picture image that most people associate with regular ultrasound. By working together the ‘Colour Doppler’ maps the filling of the vessels and shows the direction and pattern of blood flow, whilst the ’Spectral Doppler’ measures the speed of the flow. The results give a detailed and accurate diagnosis of the extent and cause of any abnormalities, blockages or narrowing in the vessels. Vascular ultrasound tests can be carried out on all the major blood vessels of the body as an out-patient investigation in our Radiology Department. Having an ultrasound scan is safe, painless and does not involve the use of any needles. Scans normally take between 30 mins to 1 hour and you can return to your normal routine following the scan.
