sFLT1, PlGF, the sFLT1/PlGF Ratio and Their Association with Pre-Eclampsia in Twin Pregnancies-A Review of the Literature.

Twin pregnancies demonstrate a 2-3-fold higher chance of developing PE compared to singletons, and recent evidence has demonstrated that the sFLT1/PIGF ratio is strongly associated with PE, adverse pregnancy outcomes, as well as imminent deliveries due to PE complications. The primary objective of this systematic review was to summarise the available data on the levels of sFLT1, PlGF and their ratios in twin pregnancies and to investigate their association with the development of PE, adverse pregnancy outcomes and the timing of the delivery. A systematic search of Ovid Embase, Web of Science, Science Direct, PubMed, Ovid Medline, Google Scholar and CINAHL was carried out. sFLT1 levels and the sFLT1/PIGF ratio appeared higher in twins compared to singleton pregnancies, especially in the third trimester, while PlGF levels appeared higher up until the third trimester, with their values showing no difference or being even lower than in singletons thereafter. The sFLT1/PIGF ratio has been reported to be an independent marker of adverse outcomes related to pre-eclampsia and is associated with the mean time until delivery in an inverse manner. Further research is required in order to establish the optimal sFLT1/PIGF cut-off values and to stratify the risk of adverse outcomes in twin pregnancies.

Treatment of Cervical Pregnancy with Ultrasound-Guided Intragestational Injection of Methotrexate: A Case Report.

This study is aimed at describing a noninvasive conservative strategy to the treatment of cervical pregnancy and highlighting the success of ultrasound-guided therapeutic techniques. A 43-year-old woman with a history of one previous cesarean section presented in our unit with vaginal spotting and a positive urine pregnancy test. She was diagnosed with a cervical pregnancy, and she was successfully treated conservatively with the administration of intragestational sac methotrexate under ultrasound guidance. Cervical pregnancy is a rare form of ectopic pregnancy that results from conceptus implantation in the cervical canal. The main concern is the associated life-threatening hemorrhage and subsequent need for urgent hysterectomy. The evolution of ultrasound over the past decades has enabled early diagnosis and has shifted the management from a radical surgical approach towards a stepwise conservative therapeutic approach, when possible.

Wandering Spleen: A Rare Case of an Adnexal Lesion.

The wandering spleen (WS) is a rare condition in which the spleen is not found in its usual location in the left hypochondrium but is positioned in the lower abdomen or the pelvis. This is a case of a 21-year-old woman who presented with chronic, intermittent, and subtle pain in the left lower quadrant of her abdomen. After clinical examination and ultrasound evaluation, an adnexal lesion was detected in the left lumbar area, and no splenic tissue was found in the left hypochondrium. The wandering spleen should be included in the differential diagnosis when encountering a patient with non-typical or acute abdominal pain. Accurate diagnostic evaluation can be performed with low-cost imaging modalities such as Doppler ultrasound.

Prediction of small for gestational age neonates: screening by maternal factors, fetal biometry, and biomarkers at 35-37 weeks' gestation.

BACKGROUND: Small for gestational age (SGA) neonates are at increased risk for perinatal mortality and morbidity; however, the risks can be substantially reduced if the condition is identified prenatally, because in such cases close monitoring and appropriate timing of delivery and prompt neonatal care can be undertaken. The traditional approach of identifying pregnancies with SGA fetuses is maternal abdominal palpation and serial measurements of symphysial-fundal height, but the detection rate of this approach is less than 30%. A higher performance of screening for SGA is achieved by sonographic fetal biometry during the third trimester; screening at 30-34 weeks' gestation identifies about 80% of SGA neonates delivering preterm but only 50% of those delivering at term, at a screen-positive rate of 10%. There is some evidence that routine ultrasound examination at 36 weeks' gestation is more effective than that at 32 weeks in predicting birth of SGA neonates. OBJECTIVE: To investigate the potential value of maternal characteristics and medical history, sonographically estimated fetal weight (EFW) and biomarkers of impaired placentation at 35+0- 36+6 weeks' gestation in the prediction of delivery of SGA neonates. MATERIALS AND METHODS: A dataset of 19,209 singleton pregnancies undergoing screening at 35+0-36+6 weeks' gestation was divided into a training set and a validation set. The training dataset was used to develop models from multivariable logistic regression analysis to determine whether the addition of uterine artery pulsatility index (UtA-PI), umbilical artery PI (UA-PI), fetal middle cerebral artery PI (MCA-PI), maternal serum placental growth factor (PlGF) and soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFLT) would improve the performance of maternal factors and EFW in the prediction of delivery of SGA neonates. The models were then tested in the validation dataset to assess performance of screening. RESULTS: First, in the training dataset, in the SGA group, compared to those with birthweight in ≥10th percentile, the median multiple of the median (MoM) values of PlGF and MCA-PI were reduced, whereas UtA-PI, UA-PI, and sFLT were increased. Second, multivariable regression analysis demonstrated that in the prediction of SGA in <10th percentile there were significant contributions from maternal factors, EFW Z-score, UtA-PI MoM, MCA-PI MoM, and PlGF MoM. Third, in the validation dataset, prediction of 90% of SGA neonates delivering within 2 weeks of assessment was achieved by a screen-positive rate of 67% (95% confidence interval [CI], 64-70%) in screening by maternal factors, 23% (95% CI, 20-26%) by maternal factors, and EFW and 21% (95% CI, 19-24%) by the addition of biomarkers. Fourth, prediction of 90% of SGA neonates delivering at any stage after assessment was achieved by a screen-positive rate of 66% (95% CI, 65-67%) in screening by maternal factors, 32% (95% CI, 31-33%) by maternal factors and EFW and 30% (95% CI, 29-31%) by the addition of biomarkers. CONCLUSION: The addition of biomarkers of impaired placentation only marginally improves the predictive performance for delivery of SGA neonates achieved by maternal factors and fetal biometry at 35+0-36+6 weeks' gestation.