Abdominal ultrasound
An abdominal ultrasound looks at the liver, the gallbladder and bile ducts, the pancreas and the spleen with sound waves. The probe sends waves through the skin, the organs bounce them back, and the machine builds a live image. No radiation, no needles. You can repeat it as often as your doctor needs, at any age. At Oberig Clinic the scan is done in the Diagnostic Department on an expert-class ACUSON Sequoia (Siemens) system, and you get the report right after the scan.
What the scan includes and what it costs
The standard protocol covers five organs: the liver, the gallbladder with its ducts, the pancreas, the spleen and the vessels that feed them (the portal vein and the abdominal aorta at the level of the scan). The kidneys, adrenal glands and bladder sit behind the abdominal cavity, in the retroperitoneum. That is why the combined scan with kidneys is a separate line in the price list and costs more. In return, one visit answers both the gastroenterologist's and the urologist's questions. The stomach and bowel show up poorly on ultrasound: they are full of gas, and gas blocks the waves. When patients ask for a "GI tract ultrasound", they usually need this abdominal scan. The lining of the stomach and bowel is a job for gastroscopy and colonoscopy.
Patients call the same scan by different names: ultrasound of the internal organs, belly ultrasound, upper abdominal scan. They all mean the study described above. The basic protocol costs UAH 1,415. The full list is in the table below.
What an abdominal ultrasound shows
The doctor measures each organ, checks its outline, its texture (uniform or not), its echogenicity and the state of the ducts. In the liver: enlargement, fatty change (steatosis), signs of hepatitis and cirrhosis, cysts, haemangiomas, focal lesions, dilated bile ducts. In the gallbladder: stones from 2-3 mm, polyps, a thickened wall in cholecystitis, a kink, sludge. In the pancreas: swelling in pancreatitis, cysts, calcifications, a change in the size of the head, body or tail. In the spleen: enlargement in infections and blood diseases, infarcts, tears after injury.
The doctor also looks for free fluid in the abdomen (ascites) and enlarged lymph nodes, and checks the blood flow in the portal vein. On an expert-class machine you can see vessels and ducts down to 1 mm, so small liver lesions are caught early. If the liver needs a stiffness check for fibrosis, the doctor adds elastography: the same probe, a different mode.
When you need the scan
The most common reason is pain or heaviness under the right ribs and in the upper abdomen, especially after fatty food. Next come bloating, nausea, a bitter taste, unstable stools, yellow skin or eyes, itchy skin with no rash. Your doctor will refer you for abnormal liver tests (ALT, AST, bilirubin), raised amylase, unexplained anaemia or weight loss. After a blow to the abdomen, ultrasound is the first test to show blood in the abdominal cavity.
Routine scans are done once a year in chronic hepatitis, gallstone disease, diabetes, obesity, and during long-term treatment with drugs that strain the liver. For patients who have had viral hepatitis or have cirrhosis, the NCCN and ESMO guidelines recommend screening every 6 months, and at Oberig Clinic it is combined with elastography. The scan also belongs in a preventive check-up after 40: half of all liver and gallbladder findings cause no symptoms at all.
How to prepare
Image quality depends on how much gas is in the bowel and whether the stomach is empty. That makes preparation the main question before your visit:
- for 2-3 days cut out everything that causes bloating: fresh brown bread, beans, cabbage, raw vegetables and fruit, milk, juice, fizzy drinks, sweets,
- on those days the doctor recommends simethicone 2-3 tablets a day, plus enzymes or activated charcoal if needed,
- the evening before, have a light dinner no later than 19:00. In the morning, nothing to eat or drink, no smoking, no chewing gum: all of these make the gallbladder contract, and then it cannot be examined,
- for an afternoon appointment, have your last light breakfast 8 hours before. Still water is allowed,
- for liver elastography bring a referral with the diagnosis and liver tests from the last 3 months. For any scan, bring previous reports for comparison.
If you have diabetes, an 8-hour fast is unsafe. A light, low-fat breakfast is allowed, and we book you for early morning. Do not stop your regular medicines. If you had a gastroscopy or colonoscopy less than 2 days ago, tell the doctor: air in the bowel will get in the way.
What happens during the scan
You lie on your back on the couch and bare your abdomen from the ribs to the waist. The doctor applies gel and moves the probe under the right ribs, down the middle, under the left ribs. Several times you will be asked to take a deep breath and hold it: on inspiration the liver and spleen drop below the ribs and come into full view. Sometimes you turn onto your left or right side, rarely you sit up. The scan takes 20-30 minutes, up to 40 with elastography. It does not hurt. Afterwards you can have breakfast and get on with your day.
Abdominal ultrasound for children
Children are scanned from the first days of life: for newborn jaundice, abdominal pain, after infections, and as a routine check at one year. Fasting depends on age. Babies under 1 go without feeding for 3-4 hours. From 1 to 4 it is 4 hours, from 4 to 12 it is 6 hours. Older children fast for 8 hours, like adults. A baby can be scanned asleep or in the mother's arms. At the clinic, paediatric scans are done by Halyna Huivan, a top-category ultrasound doctor who works with both adults and children.
Normal values and reading the report
The report holds dozens of numbers, and each has its own range depending on sex, age and build. The table gives reference values for adults. They are there to help you follow the report, not to replace the doctor's assessment:
| Organ, measurement | Adult reference range |
|---|---|
| Liver, right lobe (oblique vertical size) | up to 150 mm |
| Liver, left lobe | up to 60-70 mm |
| Portal vein | up to 13 mm |
| Gallbladder | 60-100 x 30-40 mm, wall up to 3 mm, no stones |
| Common bile duct | up to 6-8 mm |
| Pancreas: head / body / tail | up to 30 / 20 / 30 mm |
| Spleen | up to 120 x 60 mm |
| Free fluid in the abdomen | none |
A normal report describes the texture as uniform, echogenicity as normal, outlines as smooth. Phrases like "diffuse liver changes" or "increased pancreatic echogenicity" are not a diagnosis yet: fatty change looks like that, and so does last night's heavy dinner. That is why a gastroenterologist reads the report against your blood tests and symptoms. Oberig Clinic offers a combined gastroenterologist consultation with the abdominal scan in one visit. It saves time and money.
Frequently asked questions
How much does an abdominal ultrasound cost?
The basic five-organ scan costs UAH 1,415. With kidneys it is UAH 1,895, with liver elastography UAH 1,695. Every item is listed in the table below.
Can I drink water before the scan?
Better not in the morning before the scan. For an afternoon appointment a few sips of still water 1-2 hours before are fine. No coffee, tea or juice.
Can I have the scan during pregnancy or my period?
Yes. Ultrasound is safe at any stage of pregnancy, and your period has no effect on an abdominal scan.
What if the scan finds stones or a lesion?
Do not panic. Gallstones without symptoms are monitored, and liver haemangiomas usually need no treatment. Complex cases are worked up on the clinic's 3 Tesla MRI or with an ultrasound-guided biopsy by Yurii Chyrkov, PhD, interventional radiologist.
Do I need a referral?
No, you can book yourself. A referral with a diagnosis is only needed for liver elastography.
Abdominal ultrasound price at Oberig Clinic
The price depends on how much is examined and on whether the scan is done by an Honoured Doctor of Ukraine. Here are the current price list items.
| Scan | Price |
|---|---|
| Abdominal ultrasound (liver, gallbladder, bile ducts, pancreas, spleen) | UAH 1,415 |
| Expert abdominal and kidney ultrasound | UAH 1,595 |
| Combined ultrasound of the abdomen and retroperitoneum (with kidneys) | UAH 1,895 |
| Abdominal ultrasound with liver elastography | UAH 1,695 |
| Liver elastography | UAH 1,445 |
| Pre-operative abdominal ultrasound | UAH 990 |
| Ultrasound screening for free abdominal fluid (F.A.S.T.) | UAH 1,175 |
| Abdominal ultrasound by N. Riepina, Honoured Doctor of Ukraine | UAH 1,690 |
| Abdominal ultrasound with liver steatometry by N. Riepina | UAH 2,370 |
| Combined gastroenterologist consultation with abdominal ultrasound | UAH 2,630 |
Prices are taken from the clinic price list as of 01.10.2026. They may change. Please confirm the current price with the contact centre before your visit.
Why choose Oberig Clinic for an abdominal ultrasound
- An expert-class machine. The ACUSON Sequoia (Siemens) with elastography and Doppler modes shows liver vessels and ducts down to 1 mm, and its fusion software overlays ultrasound on CT and MRI to track lesions over time. The department runs 17 ultrasound machines, 7 of them expert level.
- Doctors with over 20 years of experience. Nataliia Riepina is an Honoured Doctor of Ukraine and a member of EFSUMB. Svitlana Vlasiuk is both a gastroenterologist and an ultrasound doctor with a PhD, so she sees the organ as a diagnostician and as a clinician. Yurii Chyrkov is a PhD and interventional radiologist. Halyna Huivan is a top-category ultrasound doctor for children and adults.
- European reporting standard. Every scan follows a single protocol, which cuts down subjectivity. You get the report at once, and if you also need a kidney ultrasound, it is done in the same visit.
- A full-cycle clinic. The Gastro Centre, the Centre for Liver and Pancreatic Surgery, an in-house laboratory, MRI and CT, and an inpatient ward are all at one address. From a finding on ultrasound to treatment, you never have to cross the city.
Where to get an abdominal ultrasound: Kyiv, 3 Zoologichna St., buildings "G" and "V". Book online at https://my.oberig.ua/ua/appointment/ or call +38 044 521 30 03. One reminder: come on an empty stomach. It is the main condition for a good scan.
Abdominal ultrasound?
