Prenatal ultrasound effects on bone morphology and chemical changes in young rabbits / Khairunnisa Abd Manan

The application of ultrasound technology to the clinical practice of obstetrics has achieved widespread acceptance for more than three decades. Lack of research and findings in prenatal ultrasound effects increases the need to ensure that the benefits outweigh any potential harm considering, the extensive practice of ultrasound in pregnancies. This study is aimed at evaluating the effects of 90 minutes ultrasound exposure (insonation) during middle stage of pregnancy on bone morphology and chemical changes in young rabbits. To investigate such effects, 110 New Zealand White Rabbits (Oryctolagus Cuniculus) were exposed to ultrasound at the second stage of pregnancies (duration - 90 minutes; frequency - 7.09 MHz; spatial peak temporal average intensity (SPTA) - 49.4 W/cm2; power - 56 W; thermal index (TI) - 0.2; mechanical index (MI) - 1.0). Femurs of five groups of litters (n = 30 litters per group): 1, 2, 3, 4 and 5-month-old were excised and scanned using micro computed tomography SkyscanTM 1176.