What is the difference between 3D and 4D ultrasound?
You have likely heard of 3D and 4D ultrasounds, but now you're starting to hear terms like realistic view, and high definition (HD) ultrasound. Now you're curious what is the difference anyway? We get that question all.the.time so we are going to break it down for you in an easy to understand way. With pictures Yay!
For starters all of these names are referring to different kinds of ultrasound technology, which is made up of sound waves. These sound waves we use are ultrasonic so they do not produce a sound frequency that humans can hear. They produce a picture.
2D is the traditional black and white ultrasound imaging (seen below). It has been around the longest, and it is best used in a medical setting (like your doctor’s office). With 2D the sound waves move through the layers of the baby so we can see all the vital structures like bones and organs. Your medical ultrasound will use a 2D ultrasound to make sure your baby is healthy.
3D is when the sound waves bounce off the surface of your baby. A 3D image is a STILL image of your baby that shows us the outer (skin) surface. Since 3D shows us the surface of the baby it gives us a better image of your baby’s face and features. 3D images are typically seen in the basic yellow/gold coloring (like below).
4D technology shows us the outside surface of your baby in real-time. This means that 4D ultrasounds show us a LIVE feed of your baby moving in your belly (like the clip below). Both 3D and 4D imaging is used in a non-medical setting because it shows us what your baby looks like, but it is not used to take measurements.
Realistic View Coloring- Now you may notice the difference in the image coloring and that is because the newest 4D technology comes with an added bonus. It's a realistic skin tone coloring and shading. (Now keep in mind this won’t be your baby’s actual skin tone. Ultrasound waves don’t “see” in color.) But, this technology does give us a more in-depth view of your baby so we can see details like eyelids opening and dimples when your baby smiles.
At Over the Womb our machine has a technology called Realistic View. There are multiple ultrasound machine manufacturers, and they refer to their version of this technology by different names. So you may see it called HD or even 5D, but it all refers to the skin tone coloring of the images.
We can all agree ultrasound has come a long way in the last 10-15 years. 3D is the first technology where we could really see your baby’s face. 3D ultrasounds show us a still image of the baby’s face. 4D is the most recent ultrasound technology to date. It's a live real-time view of your baby moving in your belly. Realistic View or HD refers to the coloring of the images. As this technology has improved we are able to show you not only your baby’s features, but their expressions and their personality. We are so lucky to be able to provide the latest technology to all of our clients.
