Evaluation of Fetal Lung Maturity by Quantitative Analysis (quantusFLM) in Women with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus.

OBJECTIVES: The aim of the present study was to evaluate fetal lung maturity using the noninvasive method of quantitative ultrasound analysis of fetal lung texture (quantusFLM) in women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). METHODS: A total of 96 women at 36-38 weeks of gestation were enrolled. They were classified as follows: 33 GDM cases treated with diet, 30 GDM cases treated with diet plus insulin, and 33 normoglycemic women (control group). A quantitative analysis of lung texture was performed. RESULTS: There were significant differences in the lung maturity results among groups (p = 0.004). These differences were established between the insulin-treated group of patients and both the control (p = 0.006) and diet-only (p = 0.003) groups. While none of the women in the control group or in the diet group had a high risk of immaturity, 16.7% of those treated with insulin (5/30) did (p = 0.003). There was no statistically significant correlation between HbA1c and the result of the test. CONCLUSIONS: Quantitative ultrasound study of fetal lung texture suggests that a significant percentage of pregnant women with GDM treated with insulin had fetal lung immaturity in the late preterm to early term.

Fetal lung maturity assessment: A historic perspective and Non - invasive assessment using an automatic quantitative ultrasound analysis (a potentially useful clinical tool).

Immature fetal lung is associated with many adverse outcomes including respiratory distress syndrome and transient tachypnoea of the newborn. Several methods/tools have been used over several decades to assess fetal lung maturity prior to delivery. Some of the methods that have been used to assess fetal lung maturity include amniocentesis for the biochemical markers, lecithin and sphingomyelin, lamellar body counts, gray scale ultrasound scan and magnetic resonance imaging. Amniocentesis an invasive procedure which carries a small risk of miscarriage has almost become obsolete. Magnetic resonance imaging on the other hand is expensive and not very practical. Quantitative ultrasound fetal lung maturity (quantusFLM) assessment is a new technique aimed at assessing fetal lung texture using ultrasound. The technique depends on visualization of fetal lungs at the level of the 4- chamber view. Images obtained are then uploaded via a web page application and these are analyzed remotely and results generated in minutes. The analysis depends on studying changes in the texture of lung images that depend on changes at histological level especially of collagen, fat and water. These changes are undetectable to the human eye. Randomized clinical trials have shown this technique to be accurate, reproducible, and completely non - invasive. The aim of this review was to take a historic look at methods/tools for assessing fetal lug maturity and discuss further advances and a potential non-invasive tool/method especially the non-invasive assessment that combines ultrasound scan and machine learning to accurately assess lung maturity.