I’ve been told my probe seals require work. But is it really important?

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I’ve been told my probe seals require work. But is it really important?

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Do you really need to do it? But why?

Lets start by looking at what can happen if you continue using your ultrasound probe when the seals have deteriorated and allow fluid ingress into the head of the probe. Here is a couple of pictures of a probe with the seams slightly seperating. The resultant fluid and corrosion inside has caused catastrophic corrosion for the electronics but also is a massive cross contamination risk.

For the full article on this case study, click here

 

 

Here is another probe that really demonstrates the cross contamination hazard associated with this kind of failure (click here for more images of this probe):

Sealant missing around an array and lens can also be of particular importance because if fluid gets in, severe damage due to corrosion can be experienced. here is a couple of examples:

Example 1

In addition to the obvious cross contamination hazard, there is an electrocution hazard presented by a damaged lens. In this video we show a scenario with a double fault. The lens of the probe has a failure and so does the ultrasound machine. Glad this was in a controlled environment and not on a patient!

For more information from this article, click here

 

 

 

Frequently Asked Questions:

So what should you be looking for and checking regularly on your ultrasound probes? Here is a guide
How should you be cleaning your general ultrasound probes? Here is a guide
Sometimes it isn’t always as simple as looking for dropout. In this case you can see that phased array probes don’t show dropout clearly.
It really does make sense to repair your probes instead of taking large service contracts with the OEMs. Especially if you have a fleet of machines so that you can spread your risk. Become your own insurance company with very little risk! Here is some information on this approach

 

If you require any assistance for anything ultrasound related. Don’t hesitate to contact us.

 

 

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