Should routine ultrasonography in pregnancy be mandatory?

A review of the first 500 obstetric ultrasound scans performed at the National Hospital, Abuja between September 1999 and February 2000 was carried out. Five hundred pregnant women aged 18-41 years, mean age of 30 +/- 3.41 years; who had obstetric scans were studied. 287 (57.4%) had routine scans while 213 (42.6%) had specific obstetric reasons for scanning. The former served as the control group. Of the total, positive findings were seen in 180 cases (36%). 71.8% of those with specific indications for scanning had positive findings of clinical significance, while only 9.4% of the control group had incidental findings of clinical significance. Positive findings on ultrasound were significantly greater in the group with specific reasons for scanning, P < 0.001. We suggest that ultrasound examination in pregnant women should be performed based on established medical indications, elucidated clinically.