What probes are required for veterinary ultrasound?

For small animal abdominal scanning, a single probe will often be sufficient. On the Apogee 1000 Lite, for example, the microconvex probe performs so well that it can cover transabdominal scanning across all sizes of cat and dog (as well as small ruminants), and even be used for basic cardiac scanning.

For farm animal veterinarians, again, a single probe will often suffice because farm vets will purchase a scanner for a specific purpose – usually reproductive scanning.

General practice veterinarians are more likely to need to invest in multiple probes than those specialising in a single field (such as reproduction), but this tends to be for high-end systems like the Apogee 2300, where it makes sense to equip it with a linear and/or phased array transducer alongside the microconvex, due to the depth of investigations that will be performed. If you intend to perform echocardiography, for example, you’re still highly likely to want a microconvex probe with your system in order to be able to check for associated pathology properly.

One example where it really is necessary to have a two probe system even at entry level is farmers with mixed herds: animals that need to be scanned transabdominally, like goats and sheep, as well as cows who can only effectively be scanned rectally. For these users, price can be a major barrier to entry because they need to invest in a two-probe system right away. It’s for these users that we’ve recently begun field testing the new Artemis curved rectal probe as a single probe solution to their problem.

Transducers for human ultrasound

Just like their veterinary counterparts, whether or not a single probe will suffice depends upon the application and the type of user. Those specialising in a single field – for example, MSK, podiatry or echocardiography – are likely to require only a single transducer.

However, ultrasound machines that will be shared by multiple users, such as in a hospital setting – called “shared service” ultrasound machines – are likely to require multiple transducers. Some applications, like obstetrics on maternity wards, may require two different types of probe for different stages of pregnancy or types of examination – for example, a convex probe for transabdominal scanning, and a vaginal probe for internal examinations. This means the investment is so great, it makes sense to go for a machine of Apogee 1000 Lite standard or higher for these applications.

Why are transducers so expensive?

We stock replacement ultrasound probes for a range of makes and model of ultrasound machine, but it often comes as a surprise to people just how expensive they are. People tend to think of “the ultrasound machine” as being the large computer part of the system, and the most valuable; in fact, for many systems – particularly entry-level ones – the value of the probe greatly outweighs that of the computer it connects to.

Ultrasound transducers house piezeoelectric crystals which convert electrical current into ultrasound waves, and vice versa. These components were already very expensive, but miniaturisation of technology means that much of the post-processing work now goes on inside the transducer itself, and not the thing we think of as “the ultrasound machine.” For this reason, the probes themselves are becoming ever-more sophisticated, and often more expensive.