Q: What is a musculo-skeletal ultrasound? For which problems or under which conditions is this used? Which part of the body does it scan?

A:Musculo-skeletal Ultrasound is an ultrasound scan where the bones, joints, muscles and soft tissues can be imaged by using high frequency ultrasound. It involves moving the ultrasound probe over the area of interest and obtaining information on normalcy or disease. Diseases include a wide variety of conditions such as inflammation, injury, infection, degenerative changes and tumours. The joints commonly evaluated are the shoulder and infant hip but the technique is being increasingly used for all joints and for an expanding list of diseases. It is safe, accurate and very economical. In some areas it replaces an MRI scan which is far more expensive. It is remarkably operator dependant and technologically sophisticated and, therefore, should be performed by a skilled and experienced person on a high-end machine.