Suspected Fetal Growth Restriction at 37 Weeks: A Comparison of Doppler and Placental Pathology

Effects of permanent placental injury due to severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection during pregnancy on the feto-placental circulation: a cross-sectional study

OBJECTIVE

The aim of this study was to evaluate the effects of permanent placental injury due to a severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection during pregnancy on feto-placental circulation.

METHODS

In this cross-sectional study, 83 pregnant women with planned deliveries were divided into two groups according to their severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection statuses during pregnancy. Their demographic parameters, obstetric histories, and prenatal risks were evaluated. A prenatal fetal Doppler ultrasound examination was performed for all participants, and umbilical artery and middle cerebral artery Doppler parameters were obtained. Postpartum placentas were examined for pathological findings under appropriate conditions. All placentas were evaluated according to the Amsterdam consensus criteria. Mann-Whitney U test, Student's t-test, and chi-square test were used for comparisons.

RESULTS

Demographic parameters were statistically similar, except that they were borderline significant for gestational weeks at delivery (p=0.044). In the pathological examination of the placenta, regardless of the trimester of exposure to viral infection, perivillous fibrin deposition and villus dystrophic calcification were more common in group 2 (p=0.016 and p=0.048, respectively) than in group 1. In the prenatal Doppler examination between the groups, no statistically significant difference was found for all of the umbilical artery pulsatile index, middle cerebral artery pulsatile index, and cerebro-placental ratio values.

CONCLUSION

Severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 infection during pregnancy causes an increase in perivillous fibrin deposition and villus dystrophic calcification in the placenta. Placental injury caused by the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus 2 virus does not affect fetal Doppler parameters.

A detailed echocardiographic evaluation of ventricular functions in stable full term small for gestational age babies

PURPOSE

SGA infants with fetal growth restriction have reduced ability to adapt themselves to the postnatal life because of certain epigenetic changes in cardiac function. The aim of the present study is to assess and compare the cardiac functions of fetal growth restricted SGA newborns to the term stable AGA newborns, and evaluate any differences in the cardiac functions during the postnatal transitional circulation.

METHOD

This observational study was conducted at a multispecialty tertiary care hospital in Western India from June to November 2021. The newborns were evaluated using bedside echocardiography at 24-48 h and repeat screening after 48 h. The echocardiographic assessment of the systolic function was done using EF, FS, FAC and TAPSE; diastolic function using E/A wave ratio and global functioning using LV MPI.

RESULT

Twnety-four babies were included in cases and 30 in the control arm of the study. Maternal and newborn characteristics were comparable between the two groups. FS, EF for left ventricle and TAPSE, FAC for right ventricular systolic function were significantly lower in SGA group (p = 0.02, 0.02, 0.00 and 0.01; respectively). The current study revealed a lower tricuspid E/A ratio and higher mitral E/A ratio with a significant difference beyond 48 h in the first week of life (p value 0.00). Left ventricular MPI was significantly higher in SGA infants compared to AGA infants during two subsequent readings in immediate newborn period with p values 0.01 and 0.02 respectively. The subgroup analysis revealed that fetal growth-restricted neonates with absent end-diastolic flow had a greater impact on ventricular functions.

CONCLUSION

Present study showed a significant systolic and diastolic dysfunction during initial newborn period in growth restricted SGA infants.

Association Between Fetal Middle Cerebral Artery and Umbilical Artery Doppler Ratio with Fetal Distress in 38-40 Weeks of Gestation

BACKGROUND AND OBJECTIVE

Knowing the factors affecting fetal distress is of particular importance in improving prognosis in newborns. The study aimed to determine the relationship between fetal middle cerebral artery pulsatility indexes and umbilical artery Doppler ratio with fetal distress at 38-40 weeks of gestation.

MATERIALS AND METHODS

In this prospective cohort, 181 consecutive pregnant women with 38-40 weeks of gestational age were selected by a non-random convenience sampling method from January 2016 to January 2017. Women with labor pain and embryos with chromosomal and structural disorder were excluded. Color Doppler sonography was done for all of them, and the association of this ratio with fetal distress consequently was assessed as well.

RESULTS

In this study, abnormal amniotic fluid index (AFI) (1.1%), low birth weight (< 2500 g) (5.5%), emergency cesarean (11.6%), neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) admission (12.2%), low 5th minute Apgar (< 7) (0.6%), abnormal fetal monitoring (10.5%), fetal distress (11.6%), meconium aspiration syndrome (10.5%), and respiratory distress (3.9%) were present. The mean cerebroplacental ratio was 1.9. There was a significant association between low fetal middle cerebral artery pulsatility index and umbilical artery Doppler ratio with fetal distress, abnormal monitoring, and urgent cesarean (P = 0.006). The cutoff 1.94 led to sensitivity, specificity, positive predictive value, and negative predictive value of 80.95, 50, 17.5, and 95.2%, respectively.

CONCLUSION

It may be concluded that in our study a cutoff for fetal middle cerebral artery to umbilical artery ratio of 1.94 at 38 weeks was considered statistically significant in predicting fetal distress at 38-40 weeks. However, further studies with larger sample size and multi-center sampling would develop more definite results for wider application.

Distinctive patterns of placental lesions in pre-eclampsia vs small-for-gestational age and their association with fetoplacental Doppler

OBJECTIVES

To describe placental histopathological findings in a large cohort of pregnancies complicated by pre-eclampsia (PE) and/or small-for-gestational age (SGA), and to investigate their association with fetoplacental Doppler parameters.

METHODS

This was a prospective observational study of normotensive pregnancies with SGA (defined as birth weight < 10^th centile) (n = 184), PE pregnancies with a normally grown fetus (n = 102), pregnancies with both PE and SGA (n = 120) and uncomplicated pregnancies (n = 202). Uterine (UtA), umbilical (UA) and fetal middle cerebral (MCA) artery pulsatility indices (PI) were assessed. The cerebroplacental ratio (CPR) was calculated by dividing MCA-PI by UA-PI. Doppler parameters were considered abnormal when UtA-PI or UA-PI was > 95^th centile or MCA-PI or CPR was < 5^th centile. Placental lesions were categorized as vascular (maternal or fetal side), immunoinflammatory or other, according to the 2014 Amsterdam Placental Workshop Group Consensus Statement. Comparison between the study groups was performed using univariate and multiple regression analysis, and logistic regression was used to determine the relationship between abnormal Doppler parameters and placental lesions.

RESULTS

Maternal-side vascular lesions were significantly more common in PE pregnancies with SGA than in the other groups (PE + SGA, 73% vs PE, 46% vs SGA, 38% vs controls, 31%; P = 0.01) and included mainly two types of lesion: developmental (PE + SGA, 13% vs PE, 5% vs SGA, 3% vs controls, 1.5%; P < 0.001) and malperfusion (PE + SGA, 70% vs PE, 39% vs SGA, 32% vs controls, 25%; P = 0.001). In contrast, the incidence of fetal-side developmental lesions was significantly higher in normotensive SGA pregnancies than in controls and PE pregnancies (PE + SGA, 0% vs PE, 3% vs SGA, 8% vs controls, 2%; P = 0.001). All cases displayed a lower prevalence of infectious lesions than did controls, with the highest prevalence of immune lesions observed in pregnancies with both PE and SGA (PE + SGA, 18% vs PE, 8% vs SGA, 10% vs controls, 9%; P = 0.001). All fetoplacental Doppler parameters evaluated were associated with maternal-side vascular lesions, mainly malperfusion (mean UtA-PI: odds ratio (OR), 2.45 (95% CI, 1.51-3.97); UA-PI: OR, 2.05 (95% CI, 1.02-4.47); MCA-PI: OR, 2.75 (95% CI, 1.40-5.42); CPR: OR, 1.75 (95% CI, 1.04-2.95)). This association was evident mainly in the normotensive SGA group, being non-significant in controls or PE pregnancies without SGA. No significant associations were observed between fetoplacental Doppler parameters and other placental lesions in any of the study groups.

CONCLUSIONS

PE and SGA are associated with different patterns of placental histopathological lesions in accordance with the clinical manifestation of the placental disorder (maternal vs fetal). Fetoplacental Doppler findings show an association with placental malperfusion lesions on the maternal side, supporting the use of abnormal Doppler as a surrogate for placental insufficiency. Copyright © 2019 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd.

Altered miRNA-4321 expression in maternal and foetal placenta of intrauterine growth restricted bovine foetuses

Intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) is a serious pregnancy complication caused by placental insufficiency. We previously reported that truncation of MIMT1 gene exons 3 and 4 (MIMT1^Del) causes IUGR in cattle. Here we investigated miRNA expression in the foetal and maternal placenta tissues of MIMT1^Del/WT foetuses. Small RNA next generation sequencing and quantitative PCR revealed placental tissue-specific expression of the miR-4321, known to regulate many genes involved in early foetal development. This study also indicated that maternal and foetal components of the placenta respond differently to a deleterious conceptus mutation.