Progress Toward Reversed Uterine Diastolic Flow in the Third Trimester - An Inauspicious Sign.

BACKGROUND: Increased uteroplacental resistance is associated with high uterine artery pulsatility and resistance indices and early diastolic notching. Evolution toward reversed diastolic uterine flow in the third trimester was scarcely reported previously. The feature was related to severe complications for both mother and fetus. MATERIAL AND METHODS: Data were collected from 3638 pregnancies undergoing prenatal care in our hospital. In this study, we aimed to identify those pregnancies with development of a reversed diastolic flow at the spectral Doppler interrogation of uterine arteries later than 24 weeks of gestation. A secondary aim was to follow up and actively manage these pregnancies. RESULTS: Previously, reversed uterine diastolic flow was reported during the third trimester in four cases only. In our study three pregnancies only developed reversed uterine arteries diastolic flow, none being associated with preeclampsia. All cases evolved with complications at birth. CONCLUSIONS: Progressive deterioration of uterine arteries flow is possible during pregnancy. Reversed diastolic flow is a rare occurrence in the third trimester of pregnancy. Based on current knowledge, it may be considered an ominous sign and should trigger a close follow-up. Future studies using routine investigation of uterine arteries flow late in pregnancy may prove informative.

First Trimester Ultrasound Detection of Fetal Central Nervous System Anomalies.

OBJECTIVE: To evaluate the potential of the first-trimester ultrasound (US) features for the detection of central nervous system (CNS) anomalies. Methods/Methodology: This is a prospective one-center three-year study. Unselected singleton pregnant women were examined using an extended first-trimester anomaly scan (FTAS) that included the CNS assessment: the calvaria shape, the septum (falx cerebri), the aspect of the lateral ventricles, the presence of the third ventricle and aqueduct of Sylvius (AS) and the posterior brain morphometry: the fourth ventricle, namely intracranial translucency (IT), brain stem/brain stem-occipital bone ratio (BS/BSOB) and cisterna magna (CM). The spine and underlying skin were also evaluated. The cases were also followed during the second and third trimesters of pregnancy and at delivery. FTAS efficiency to detect major CNS abnormalities was calculated. RESULTS: We detected 17 cases with CNS major abnormalities in a population of 1943 first-trimester (FT) fetuses, including spina bifida with myelomeningocele, exencephaly-anencephaly, holoprosencephaly, hydrocephaly, cephalocele and Dandy-Walker malformation. The CNS features in the abnormal group are presented. In the second trimester (ST), we further diagnosed cases of corpus callosum agenesis, cerebellar hypoplasia, vein of Galen aneurysm and fetal infection features (ventriculomegaly, intraventricular bands, intraventricular cyst and hyperechoic foci), all declared normal at the FTAS. During the third trimester (TT) scan we identified a massive fetal cerebral haemorrhage absent at previous investigations. We report a detection rate of 72.7% of fetal brain anomalies in the FT using the proposed CNS parameters. The sensitivity of the examination protocol was 72.7%, and the specificity was 100%. CONCLUSION: A detailed FT CNS scan is feasible and efficient. The majority of cases of major CNS abnormalities can be detected early in pregnancy. The visualization rates of the CNS parameters in the FT are great with short, if any, additional investigation time. FT cerebral disorders such as haemorrhage or infections were missed in the FT even when an extended evaluation protocol was used.

Can Ultrasound Analysis of the Yolk Sac be a Predictor of Pregnancy Outcome?

The Yolk sac is the first source of transfer between the mother and the embryo, with a nutritional and gas exchange function, vital for the development of the embryo, to which we can add primitive hematopoiesis, the production of stem cells and germ cells. Although normal-term pregnancies with abnormal aspects of the yolk sac have been described, the smaller or larger size of the yolk sac is associated with pregnancy loss. Our study aimed to determine whether the yolk sac size change, determined by measuring diameter (2D ultrasonography) or volume (3D ultrasonography), is independently associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes. The results of the study did not show a statistical significance between 2D and 3D measurements with adverse pregnancy outcomes, noting only an abrupt increase in the diameter and volume of the yolk sac preceding pregnancy loss. However, the evaluation of the yolk sac remains an important element in the ultrasound evaluation of pregnancy in the first trimester.