Obstetric outcome in patients with a unicornuate uterus after laparoscopic resection of a rudimentary horn

Reproductive Outcome of the Patients with Uterus Unicornis: Five Year Experience in a Tertiary Center

Aim

The aim is to evaluate the pregnancy outcomes of patients with uterus unicornis for 5-year experience in a tertiary center.

Material and Method

Twenty patients with uterus unicornis who were diagnosed with hysterosalpingography and/or 3D TVUSG between 2017 and 2021 and then confirmed with laparoscopy and simultaneous hysteroscopy were recruited into this retrospective study. The reproductive outcome and obstetric complications of the patients were followed up for two years postoperative period.

Results

Overall 20 patients who fulfilled the inclusion criterion were recruited for the study. The mean age was 28.65±5.03 years. Thirteen patients (65%) had primary infertility while the remaining seven had secondary infertility with two of them having a previous ectopic pregnancy. Rudimentary communicating uterine horn was observed in 7 (35%) of the patients. The horns were excised during laparoscopy. Overall, 14 (70%) pregnancies were achieved during the 2 years follow-up period. Twelve (85.7%) patients had a live birth (71.4% term delivery, 21.4% preterm delivery), and two (15.3%) had a first-trimester spontaneous abortion. Six (50%) of 12 patients who had a live birth received tocolytics for preterm labor.

Conclusion

Unicorn uterus is a rare anomaly diagnosed mostly during infertility work-up and might be related to the poor obstetric outcome, but early diagnosis is important for successful pregnancy results for preterm delivery especially in the secondary infertile group. In addition, rudimentary horn excision is recommended due to the high risk of obstetric complications.

Non-communicated rudimentary uterine horn pregnancy and uterine rupture: A case report

Rudimentary uterine horn pregnancy is a rare and serious type of ectopic pregnancy and is hard to diagnose due to a lack of typical clinical symptoms at the early stage. A 35-year-old woman who was17 weeks pregnant and had a complicated history of infertility came to our hospital complaining of abdominal pain without vaginal bleeding. Computed tomography scan after 12 hours showed that her pregnancy was in the small cavity of a rudimentary uterine horn, which had ruptured. Noncommunicating rudimentary uterine horn pregnancy is an extremely rare form of ectopic gestation, and its diagnosis and management remain challenging. Nevertheless, physician awareness of various forms of unicornuate uteri and rudimentary uterine horn can save lives.

Maternal and Fetal Outcomes after Prior Mid-Trimester Uterine Rupture: A Systematic Review with Our Experience

Background and Objectives: Since spontaneous uterine rupture in the mid-trimester is rare, maternal and fetal outcomes in subsequent pregnancies remain unclear. Therefore, this study aimed to examine the maternal and fetal outcomes of subsequent pregnancies after prior mid-trimester uterine rupture. Materials and Methods: A systematic review using PubMed, the Cochrane Central Register of Controlled Trials, and Scopus until 30 September 2021, was conducted in compliance with the Preferred Reporting Items for Systematic Reviews and Meta-Analyses guidelines. The studies that clarified the maternal and fetal outcomes after prior mid-trimester uterine rupture and our case (n = 1) were included in the analysis. Results: Among the eligible cases, there were five women with eight subsequent pregnancies after prior mid-trimester uterine rupture. The timing of prior mid-trimester uterine rupture ranged from 15 to 26 weeks of gestation. The gestational age at delivery in subsequent pregnancies was 23–38 gestational weeks. Among the included cases (n = 8), those involving prior mid-trimester uterine rupture appeared to be associated with an increased prevalence of placenta accreta spectrum (PAS) (n = 3, 37.5%) compared with those involving term uterine rupture published in the literature; moreover, one case exhibited recurrent uterine rupture at 23 weeks of gestation (12.5%). No maternal deaths have been reported in subsequent pregnancies following prior mid-trimester uterine rupture. Fetal outcomes were feasible, except for one pregnancy with recurrent mid-trimester uterine rupture at 23 weeks of gestation, whose fetus was alive complicated by cerebral palsy. Conclusions: Our findings suggest that clinicians should be aware of the possibility of PAS and possible uterine rupture in pregnancies after prior mid-trimester uterine rupture. Further case studies are warranted to assess maternal and fetal outcomes in pregnancies following prior mid-trimester prior uterine rupture.

Association of a unicornuate uterus with adverse obstetric outcomes: A retrospective cohort study

OBJECTIVE

To estimate the association of unicornuate uterus (UU) with adverse obstetric outcomes.

METHODS

Using data from 26 737 singleton childbirths from a tertiary hospital from 1999 to 2019, we identified 44 births from women with a UU. A total of 367 births from women with a normal uterus were randomly selected as controls. The outcome measures were preterm birth (PTB), breech presentation, and cesarean delivery. The subdivisions of PTB and indications for cesarean delivery were described.

RESULTS

The presence of UU was associated with an increased risk of PTB (adjusted risk ratio [aRR], 2.3; 95% confidence interval [CI], 1.1-4.9), breech presentation (aRR, 6.2; 95% CI, 2.9-13.2), and cesarean delivery (aRR, 2.1; 95% CI, 1.8-2.7). For women with a UU, most PTBs (7/9) were moderate to late PTBs, and approximately half of the PTBs (4/9) were iatrogenic due to preeclampsia (PE). Breech presentation, PE, and prior surgery for rudimentary horn resection were UU-related indications for cesarean delivery.

CONCLUSIONS

Women with a UU have a higher risk of PTB, breech presentation, and cesarean delivery. Understanding of the subdivisions of PTBs and indications for cesarean delivery might help clinicians when counseling women with pregnancy complicated by a UU.

Ectopic pregnancy in noncommunicating horn of unicornuate uterus: 3D-ultrasound and primary laparoscopic management

Unicornuate uterus with pregnancy in the noncommunicating rudimentary horn is extremely rare. Diagnosis requires awareness, high suspicion index, 3D ultrasound, and MRI. If missed, it can be catastrophic. Treatment varies across literature. We present a case where detection was done by 3D ultrasound and primary laparoscopic surgery done for treatment.

Obstetric Outcomes of Pregnancy After Uterine Artery Embolization

BACKGROUND

Uterine artery embolization (UAE) is used to treat severe postpartum hemorrhage (PPH). According to a few studies, UAE for PPH was associated with preterm birth, fetal growth restriction (FGR), and placenta accreta spectrum (PAS) in subsequent pregnancies. These previous studies, however, lacked controls, and to the best of our knowledge, no systematic literature reviews have been conducted thus far. We report the results of our retrospective case-control study of pregnancies after UAE at a single center and include a literature review to evaluate the risk of PAS in pregnancies after UAE.

METHODS

We retrospectively reviewed data from deliveries at our hospital between January 2012 and October 2017. We divided the delivery data into cases with previous UAEs performed for PPH (the post-UAE group) and those without UAEs (the non-UAE group, which included women without previous PPH). We defined PAS as cases in which hysterectomy was performed and pathological examination confirmed the diagnosis. Results are presented as odds ratios (ORs) with 95% confidence intervals (95% CIs).

RESULTS

We used data from 3155 patients in this study, of whom 16 patients had undergone UAE (post-UAE group) and 3139 had not (non-UAE group). We found no differences between the groups in terms of frequency of preterm births (12.5% versus 14.2%, respectively; OR, 0.863; 95% CI, 0.218 to 3.414; P = 0.84) or FGR (6.2% versus 10.0%, respectively; OR, 0.602; 95% CI, 0.104 to 3.584; P = 0.61). However, cases of PAS were significantly more common in the post-UAE group (37.5%) than in the non-UAE group (1.2%; OR, 50.303; 95% CI, 17.38 to 145.592; P < 0.01).

CONCLUSION

Our results suggest that previous UAE is a significant risk factor for PAS.

Analysis of the reproductive outcomes and the size of the unicornuate uterus measured by magnetic resonance imaging and their relationship

PURPOSE

To evaluate the relationship between the uterine size measured by pelvic magnetic resonance and reproductive outcome in women with a unicornuate uterus.

METHODS

This was a retrospective study including 140 patients affiliated with unicornuate uterus diagnosed by the pelvic MR prior to their first pregnancy in the Obstetrics and Gynecology Hospital of Fudan University from April 2010 to December 2017. All the length of the unicornuate uterus were re-measured and recorded by skilled radiologists during the study period. We divided all the 140 participants with complete pelvic MR imaging into four groups by the best reproductive outcomes, which refers to Group 1 (primary infertility, n = 21), Group 2 ( < 24 weeks' gestation, n = 34), Group 3 (preterm delivery, 24-35 weeks' gestation, n = 13), Group 4 ( ≥ 35 weeks' gestation, n = 72), followed them up and then analyzed the data.

RESULTS

Measurements of 140 patients with hemi-uteri were retrieved for analysis. The mean length of the uterine was 4.90  ± 0.56 cm. There were no significant differences in the uterine cavity length, cervical length, endometrial thickness and uterine wall thickness between the four groups while the uterine length (P = 0.001) was statistically significant. Women with uterine lengths  ≥  4.5 cm were more likely to experience full-term delivery compared with the other group (P = 0.001). Ordinal multiple logistic regression analysis showed that the uterine length [OR = 9.03 (95% CI: 2.90-28.13)] and uterine cavity length [OR = 0.32 (95% CI: 0.06-2.04)] were independent protective factors for better obstetric outcomes CONCLUSION: The uterine length is a reliable prognostic factor for the gestational week of delivery and an appropriate antenatal surveillance factor of women with unicornuate uterus.

The pregnancy outcomes of patients with rudimentary uterine horn: A 30-year experience

OBJECTIVES

To evaluate the presentation, assessment, treatment, and pregnancy outcomes of 22 women with a rudimentary uterine horn.

METHODS

We reviewed the data regarding the outcomes of patients with a rudimentary horn pregnancy (RHP) who were managed at Peking Union Medical College Hospital over the last 30 years. Twenty-two pregnant patients with a rudimentary horn have been treated at our institute over the last 30 years. All patients with RHP were divided into two groups: Type A (n = 4), a rudimentary horn with a cavity that communicated with the uterus; and Type B (n = 7), a rudimentary horn with a cavity that did not communicate with the uterus. We classified all 22 patients into communicating group or noncommunicating group according to the anatomical connection of the rudimentary horn to the contralateral hemiuterus.

RESULTS

The mean gestational age of Type A patients (23.5 weeks) was significantly higher (P = 0.046) than that of Type B patients (10 weeks). The rudimentary uterine horn carried 4 of 5 (80%) pregnancies in the communicating group. Three case of rudimentary horn pregnancies ruptured before a gestational age of 12 weeks, and one abortion occurred after a gestational age of 12 weeks. In the noncommunicating group, 7 of 17 (41.2%) cases were RHPs, and 3 ruptured after a gestational age of 12 weeks.

CONCLUSIONS

The diagnosis and management of the rudimentary uterine horn continues to be challenging. Medical and radiological personnel must maintain a high degree of alertness to prevent the morbidity associated with this condition. In particular, patients with RHP (Type A), who have a higher chance being misdiagnosed before 12 gestational weeks, have a higher risk of potential complications. If pregnancy in the rudimentary horn is diagnosed, excision of the pregnant horn is recommended, regardless of the type of unicornuate uterus.