Intra-uterine fetal echo cardiography in high-risk pregnancies

ABSTRACT

The purpose of this study was to evaluate the accuracy of prenatal fetal echocardiography in detecting congenital heart defects pregnant women at high and low risk for structural cardiac anomalies. A prospective outcome of two cohorts study was performed, 50 pregnant women with non complicated [low risk] and 100 high risk pregnant patients underwent routine four chamber and left ventricular outflow tract evaluation whereas high risk, patients had detailed fetal echocardiographic examination. Accuracy of the ultrasonographic diagnosis was evaluated from neonatal discharge data. The study detects one fetus, had small sized apical muscular ventricular septal defect [VSD]. Fetuses of high risk group have smaller and diastolic, end systolic left ventricular cavity dimensions, interventricular septal thickness, left ventricular wall thickness, aortic root diameter and left atrial diameter than the matched control. It can be concluded that high risk cause studied showed changes in fetal heart chamber dimensions but not to the extent of known congenital fetal cardiac malformation