Unborn babies on your iPod

Launched today by the Portland Hospital, the new high-tech scanning service could signal the end of grainy black-and-white prints. The 4D realtime ultrasounds provide a new level of detail for in-the-womb images - and are better for detecting problems.

The private maternity clinic in central London, whose celebrity patients have included Victoria Beckham and Sarah Ferguson, has tailored the £ 120 babyscan service to suit career mothers.

Women can visit the clinic in their lunch hour, have a 40-minute scan and then download the high-definition images to their MP3 player or mobile phone via a secure internet site.

Scanning is vital for doctors to help track the normal development of unborn babies. It is also used to detect potential defects, such as heart problems, which can be corrected in the womb. Pregnant women usually receive two scans on the NHS. The first is carried out at 12 weeks.

But these often use 2D ultrasound equipment which does not provide clear pictures. The Portland is among those clinics which have pioneered scanning techniques.

Their 4D equipment works in a similar way to traditional scanners except the ultrasound waves are directed from multiple angles. This means the scan- ner has enough information to provide a moving image when the waves are reflected back.

Doctors say that scans can improve the bonding process between a mother and baby.

Tom Cruise and his actress wife Katie Holmes bought an ultrasound machine to monitor their baby's progress at home. They later donated the £100,000 machine to a hospital after the birth of daughter, Suri.

However, doctors have criticised the growth in websites offering parents "souvenir" videos of their unborn children.

Experts say scans should only be carried out for medical reasons. Professor Pranav Pandya, joint medical director of the Portland's maternal and foetal well-being centre, said their service was unique in combining expert care for unborn babies as well as the benefit of highest definition images for parents.

Mr Pandya, professor of foetal medicine at University College London, said: "This represents the greatest advance in scanning technology in terms of any defects that we can detect.

"It also gives the additional benefit of images which can increase the bonding process and track a baby's development."

The 4D scans can be carried out at 12 weeks for download onto a CD or DVD. However, recognisable baby images only first become clear at 18 to 20 weeks. The Portland's new maternal and foetal well-being centre combines medical services as well as complementary therapies and antenatal classes under one roof. Doctors can also carry out special profile checks on unborn babies which show their movement, muscle tone and breathing as well as the growth measurements.