The Radiological Society of North America. Diamond Jubilee lecture. Seeing with sound

The concept of making images from reflected sound waves is not new. Its origin, however, was not in medicine, but in industrial warfare. Much present-day technology derives from U.S. Navy research in World War II. Introduction to medicine began at the war's completion, but practical applications have been available only for the past 2 decades. In this short span, ultrasonography has been applied to nearly all specialties of medicine. It is now an indispensable adjunct to diagnosis, and in some areas, such as obstetrics, modern practitioners could not function without it. It is estimated that by the year 1991, 25% of all imaging studies (worldwide) will be sonograms. While such widespread use invariably leads to turf and training problems, the end result has been very positive for patients.