Umbilical vein blood flow in growth‐restricted fetuses

Objective To determine whether umbilical blood flow is reduced in a subset of growth‐restricted (IUGR) fetuses when expressed as flow per kilogram or flow per unit of specific sonographic fetal measurements. Design Prospective. Subjects Thirty‐seven IUGR fetuses were examined by Doppler ultrasound w...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Ultrasound in obstetrics & gynecology 2000-10, Vol.16 (5), p.432-438
Main Authors: Ferrazzi, E., Rigano, S., Bozzo, M., Bellotti, M., Giovannini, N., Galan, H., Battaglia, F. C.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Abdominal circumference
Adult
Analysis of Variance
Biological and medical sciences
Blood Flow Velocity
Cross-Sectional Studies
Diseases of mother, fetus and pregnancy
Doppler ultrasound
Female
Fetal Growth Retardation - diagnostic imaging
Fetal Growth Retardation - physiopathology
Gynecology. Andrology. Obstetrics
Head circumference
Human fetus
Humans
Intrauterine growth restriction
Linear Models
Medical sciences
Pregnancy
Pregnancy Trimester, Third
Pregnancy. Fetus. Placenta
Prospective Studies
Sensitivity and Specificity
Ultrasonography, Doppler - methods
Ultrasonography, Prenatal - methods
Ultrasound
Umbilical vein blood flow
Umbilical Veins - diagnostic imaging
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Summary:Objective To determine whether umbilical blood flow is reduced in a subset of growth‐restricted (IUGR) fetuses when expressed as flow per kilogram or flow per unit of specific sonographic fetal measurements. Design Prospective. Subjects Thirty‐seven IUGR fetuses were examined by Doppler ultrasound within 4 h of the last non‐stress test prior to delivery. This population was divided into three groups of varying clinical severity according to the characteristics of umbilical arterial pulsatility index (PI) and heart rate. Methods Absolute and weight‐specific umbilical vein (UV) flow were calculated from measurements of UV diameter and UV mean velocity. Umbilical vein diameter, velocity and UV flow were calculated also per unit head (HC) or abdominal circumference (AC) and correlated with gestational age. Results Umbilical vein flow (UVf) per kilogram fetal weight was significantly lower in the more severe IUGR fetuses (abnormal umbilical arterial PI) than in normally grown comparable fetuses (P < 0.001). Umbilical vein flow per unit HC was significantly lower in the three groups (P < 0.001) than in the control population. The UV diameter/HC ratio was normal whereas UV velocity/HC ratio was significantly lower in IUGR fetuses than in comparable controls. Conclusions The present study clearly establishes that umbilical venous blood flow is reduced in IUGR fetuses on a weight‐specific basis. The sonographic growth parameter which best distinguishes umbilical flow differences of IUGR fetuses from normal fetuses is the head circumference. Copyright © 2001 International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology
ISSN:0960-7692
1469-0705
DOI:10.1046/j.1469-0705.2000.00208.x