The short answer: Cell phones don't do ultrasound.. No app can turn your phone into an examination device, and waiting for the next update won't help. It's a physical thing.
What exists, and confuses many people, are medical probes that use the cell phone screen as a monitor and a bunch of fun apps that mimic the image of the exam. Below, what each thing does and where to see the baby in the exam.
Why can't the cell phone do it?
Ultrasound works with sound at extremely high frequencies, in the millions of cycles per second. A device called a transducer emits this sound, which passes through the skin with the help of gel, hits the organs, and returns as an echo. The device measures the duration of each echo and assembles the image in shades of gray.
The speaker and microphone on a cell phone are designed for voice and music, which stop at around 20,000 cycles per second. A pregnancy test uses frequencies a hundred times higher or more. Without the transducer, there is no sound to enter the body nor echo to return, and the app has nowhere to take any images from.
Probes that use the cell phone screen
They exist and are used in hospitals and ambulances. Models like the Butterfly iQ and Clarius have the transducer inside the probe itself and send the image to a cell phone or tablet, via cable or wirelessly. The manufacturer's app is just the dashboard: without the probe connected, it shows nothing.
These are medical devices, sold to healthcare professionals and services, that cost thousands of dollars and require training to perform and interpret the examination.
What appears in the store when you search for "ultrasound"?“
- Simulators and games. They place a pre-made ultrasound image over the camera. It's for pranks, not for actually seeing a baby.
- Apps "to listen to the baby's heartbeat". They ask you to place the microphone against your belly. The microphone picks up noise from the belly and the environment and does not replace prenatal ultrasound. A soothing sound can delay a visit to the doctor precisely when something is wrong.
- Apps that accompany a probe. These are the control panels for a piece of equipment sold separately, such as those mentioned above.
- Pregnancy monitoring. A week-by-week calendar, symptoms, and appointments. These are very helpful and don't promise any specific tests.
Where to see the baby
During prenatal care, an obstetric ultrasound is requested by the healthcare provider and reveals information that no app can show: gestational age, growth, placental position, and amniotic fluid volume. Through the Brazilian public health system (SUS), prenatal care is free and includes consultations, exams, and vaccinations.
The FDA, the United States health agency, recommends that ultrasound during pregnancy be performed only with a doctor's recommendation and advises against "keepsake" images and home heart rate monitors. An exam without a medical indication and without someone who knows how to interpret the image protects no one.
Apps that are worth using during pregnancy
To track pregnancy week by week, record symptoms, and avoid missing appointments, pregnancy apps do a great job. Pregnancy+, BabyCenter, and Flo are among the most downloaded on the Play Store. See the full list at [link to Play Store]. Pregnancy Tracking Apps.
