Abstract
Objectives
To assess fetal cardiac structures using HDlive Flow Silhouette with spatiotemporal image correlation (STIC) at 12 to 14 + 6 weeks of gestation, and verify the feasibility of obtaining five cardiac views in the late first and early second trimesters of pregnancy. The fetal cardiac shape and the aspect of the descending aorta were also evaluated.
Methods
Eighty normal fetuses at 12 to 14 + 6 weeks of gestation were studied using trans-abdominal HDlive Flow Silhouette with STIC to assess the feasibility of five fetal cardiac views (frontal, spatial three-vessel, panoramic, posterior, and right lateral views). Target structures in each cardiac view were evaluated. ‘Good’ was assigned when all structures were noted, ‘Fair’ when only one structure was missed, and ‘Poor’ when two and more structures could not be detected. Frequencies of an elongated heart and those of a tortuous descending aorta were counted.
Results
Forty-nine fetuses were effectively included in the analysis. Success rates of ‘Good’ and ‘Fair’ were significantly higher with spatial three-vessel (p<0.01) and panoramic views (p<0.05). Frequencies of “Elongated heart”, “Elongated left ventricle”, and “Spherical heart” were 12.2, 6.2, and 81.6%, respectively. Frequencies of “Tortuous descending aorta” and “Straight descending aorta” were 12.2 and 87.8%, respectively.
Conclusions
The feasibility of obtaining fetal five cardiac views using HDlive Flow Silhouette with STIC is good, and this technique provides useful information for evaluating fetal cardiac structures in the late first and early second trimesters of pregnancy.
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Research funding: None declared.
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Author contributions: TH: study design and coordination, supervision of the study, acquisition and validation of the data, analyze and interpretation of the data, and writing of the manuscript. AK: study design and coordination, and acquisition and validation of the data. TK: acquisition and validation of the data. MK: acquisition and validation of the data. RT: study design and coordination. YM: statistical analysis of the data. TM: study design and coordination, and supervision of the study. All authors have accepted responsibility for the entire content of this manuscript and approved its submission.
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Competing interests: Authors state no conflict of interest.
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Informed consent: All participants provided informed consent after a full explanation of the aim of the study.
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Ethical approval: The study was conducted following approval by the Ethics Committee of Miyake Clinic.
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