Blind Mothers Can Now “See” Their Unborn Child Through 3D Printed Sonogram

For many women, being a mother is the most fulfilling thing in life.

Nothing is more thrilling than seeing your unborn child for the first time. The angelic face of your baby waiting for your cuddle once he or she is ready to come out.

However, that is not always the case for every pregnancy. There are some who can feel another life growing inside her but has no ability to see what is going on.

Visually-impaired mothers are having a hard time experiencing a quality prenatal experience. Inability to visualize their offspring creates difficulty to absorb the situation. It sometimes leads to mental health issues.

Below are some of the mental health issues pregnant women may suffer: 

• Depression
• Anxiety
• Bipolar disorder
• Post-traumatic stress disorder
• Panic attacks
• Obsessive-compulsive disorder
• Eating disorders

Medical innovators are doing their best to change this situation for blind parents. A blind father in the UK was able to feel his unborn child with an embroidered ultrasound.

While this innovation is most welcome, what if there is an even better option? What if a blind mother can feel her unborn child like it is real? What if you can touch the eyes, nose, and lips?

3D printed sonograms are a recent innovation by medical professionals to improve the field of prenatal research. It can also be beneficial for blind parents who want to “see” their unborn child.

The 3D printed sonogram was first proposed to detect early deformities with the fetus. This can give doctors more detailed information on the anatomy of the baby. Early deformities are more noticeable with the use of this technology.

3D Sonogram: A Once-in-a-Lifetime Experience

Though 3D printed sonograms are new, there are some blind mothers who have experienced it.

Ana Paula Silveria from Brazil, a visually-impaired mother got a glimpse of her baby during their ultrasound with the help of 3D printed sonogram. According to her, feeling the baby with her hands gave her a feeling of being whole as she can follow her son’s evolution.

26-year-old Taylor Ellis from US who is another visually-impaired mother, described the experience as “really emotional” and that it feels “super real” when she feels it.

These experiences allowed us to examine how helpful 3D printed sonograms are for blind parents. As mentioned before, the original purpose of this technology is to supply doctors helpful information about the condition of an infant.

Nevertheless, it became clear that it can also be a way for blind mothers to feel whole and have a full prenatal experience.

3D Sonogram: A Welcome Sight for Blind Mothers

It will be cool to have an image of your unborn baby on the fridge, framed or even posted on social media for everyone to see. 

Here are some of the types of ultrasounds available: 

• Abdominal Ultrasound
• Pelvic Ultrasound Imaging
• Transabdominal
• Transvaginal Ultrasound
• Transrectal
• Obstetric Ultrasound Imaging
• Carotid & Abdominal Aorta Ultrasound Imaging

Although 2D ultrasound is beneficial for pregnant women, pregnant mothers who are visually-impaired cannot gain any significant advantage on it since it only produces a 2D image.

But with the introduction of 3D printing sonograms, blind mothers can now touch the eyes, nose, lips, and other body parts of their unborn child.

Sighted mothers feel uncontained happiness from looking at their unborn child’s 2D pictures. 3D Sonogram can give blind mothers a comparable feeling.

3D Sonogram: Evolution of Fetal Imagery

Over the past couple of decades, medical professionals have made significant developments in ultrasound technology. From a simple sound wave frequency to produce a 2D image to the use of liquid crystal to produce electric current under the vibration produced by the ultrasound wave.

This technology helps medical researchers to identify early complications for unborn study. Realistic imagery of the fetus through 3D printed sonogram can detect deformed body parts or inflammation in the body.

On the other hand, 3D sonogram also helps revolutionize how we understand the anatomy of the fetus during pregnancy. Parents can now easily recreate the image of their baby because of the real-life image of their unborn child.

With the availability of 3D printed sonograms, there is no limit on what you can see from your unborn child. It helps you visualize the total appearance of the life growing inside your body.

3D Sonogram in Detecting Early Complications

As stated, 3D printed sonograms were first used for medical research. One of the early examples is when an American doctor, Dr. Jena Miller used this technology to perform a surgery of a baby she was treating in utero for spina bifida.

Here are some of the defects 3D Sonogram can detect:

• Spina Bifida
• Heart defects
• Kidney problems
• Absence of part of a limb
• Cleft Lip

Blind mothers can also benefit in this medical research as they can also feel the possible deformity their offspring can have. This could also prepare them on what is coming while raising their baby.

This could also ease up the anxiety they are having from the fact that their infant child can inherit their condition. Early detection of a deformity could make a difference in finding a solution.

3D Sonogram: A Way to Ease Anxiety

As stated, pregnancy can be a stressing time for a mother. This might affect the condition of the child inside her womb.

Study shows that fetal imagery can greatly affect the maternal-fetal attachment. Being afraid of not seeing the situation of your unborn baby is understandable for blind parents. 

Touching a 3D printed sonogram in their hand feels like holding their real baby. This builds an emotional attachment of the mother to their unborn child.

It also reduces the anxiety during pregnancy. Imagine a blind mother’s anxiety having another life growing inside her without seeing it.

But with the help of 3D printed sonograms, visually-impaired mothers can ease up their worry as they can feel their babies with their hands.

3D Sonogram: A Product of Love

To say that a mother’s love is unconditional is an understatement. There are no words that can describe a mother’s love for her children. They are willing to sacrifice everything just to make them happy.

They carried and took care of you in their womb for a long period of time. Imagine your mother’s joy when she sees you for the first time. How your nose looks like your father, your eyes look like hers?

3D sonograms are the definition that love knows no boundaries. Even for visually-impaired parents. 

For those who have visually-impaired loved ones, this can be a perfect gift for their baby shower. Your friend will appreciate the thought of “showing” them what their baby looks like.

3D2GO: Where Ideas Meet Possibilities

Before, it was impossible to gain access to this kind of technology. You need to go overseas just to have a 3D printed of your 3D and 4D ultrasound.

But now, 3D2GO can give you the best service at a reasonable price. Our 3D printers are ready to provide you the service you need.

3D2GO is the only one-stop shop for everything 3D printing in the Philippines. As such, we offer a wide range of services from scanning, printing, designing, reverse engineering and prototyping.

3D2Go: Your One-Stop Shop for 3D Printed Sonogram

We are one of the best facilities in the country to perform your 3D printed sonogram. All you need is to provide a 3 dimensional image of your unborn infant and we will make it happen.

Our facility met strict guidelines to ensure the accuracy of the 3D images we are producing. We can assure you that the 3D printed sonogram is exactly the same as your image. 

Our expert designers will create a 3D animation of your unborn infant.

If you want to hang it on your wall in your living room and bedroom, we can also do a post-processed design of the printed sonogram based on your creative preference.

There are limitless ideas we can do with your printed sonogram. Contact us today and be amazed with the infinite ways to make your first 3D printed sonogram memorable!