Differences in biomarkers of cardiac dysfunction in cord blood between normal pregnancies and pregnancies complicated by maternal diabetes

NT-proBNP Concentrations in the Umbilical Cord and Serum of Term Neonates: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

The detection of NT-proBNP levels both in umbilical cord blood (UCB) samples and in serum samples collected from healthy term neonates during the neonatal period. A systematic review of relevant literature in accordance with PRISMA guidelines was conducted. For quality appraisal, the potential risk of bias was assessed using the BIOCROSS evaluation tool. The random-effects and fixed-effects models were used to calculate weighted mean differences with a corresponding 95% confidence interval. A total of forty (40) studies met the inclusion criteria for the systematic review. After further examination, eighteen (18) studies (1738 participants) from the UCB sample group and fourteen (14) studies (393 participants) from the serum sample group were selected to perform a meta-analysis. Using the fixed-effects model, the mean intervals of NT-proBNP in UCB and serum samples were 492 pg/mL (95% CI: 480−503 pg/mL) and 1341 pg/mL (95% CI: 1286−1397 pg/mL), respectively. A higher concentration of ΝΤ-proBNP was observed in the serum sample group compared to the UCB samples (p < 0.001). We present the intervals of NT-proBNP in UCB and in the serum of healthy term neonates. The determination of the potential effect of perinatal factors on the biomarker’s reference range was also aimed.

Fetal Interventricular Septum Volume Evaluated by Three-Dimensional Ultrasound Using Spatiotemporal Image Correlation and Virtual Organ Computer-Aided Analysis in Fetuses From Pre-Gestational Diabetes Mellitus Pregnant Women

BACKGROUND

To assess the interventricular septum (IVS) volume of fetuses from pre-gestational diabetes mellitus (DM) pregnant women by 3-dimensional ultrasound using spatiotemporal image correlation (STIC) and virtual organ computer-aided analysis (VOCAL) methods.

METHODS

This was a prospective cross-sectional study of 45 fetuses from pre-gestational DM and 45 fetuses from healthy pregnant women (controls). Only singleton pregnancies between 20 and 34 + 6 weeks of gestation were included. The fetal IVS volumes were obtained off-line using STIC and VOCAL methods. To analyze differences among variables, the Student’s t-test and Mann-Whitney U test were used. The correlation among continuous variables was determine using Spearman’s correlation test (r).

RESULTS

The median of fetal IVS volume was significantly higher in pre-gestational DM than in healthy pregnant women (0.3 cm³ vs. 0.2 cm³, p = 0.032). A strong positive correlation was observed between fetal IVS volume and gestational age at the time of ultrasound examination (r = 0.75, R² = 0.48, p < 0.0001) and between fetal IVS volume and estimated fetal weight (r = 0.63, R² = 0.37, p < 0.0001). No significant correlation was noted between fetal IVS volume and glycated hemoglobin levels (r = −0.16, R² = 0.01, p = 0.540) in the pre-gestational DM pregnant women.

CONCLUSIONS

Significant differences were observed in fetal IVS volumes between pre-gestational and healthy mothers, with higher values in the fetuses of pre-gestational DM pregnant women.