Faculty Bibliography

OBJECTIVE: The prenatal detection rate of isolated fetal limb abnormalities ranges from 4 to 29.5%. Our aim was to determine the accuracy of a detailed ultrasound protocol in detecting isolated fetal limb abnormalities Methods: This is a retrospective study of infants born at our institution with isolated limb defects from 2009 to 2014. Antepartum and postpartum records were reviewed for genetic testing results. We routinely image both upper and lower extremities, including all long bones, hands, feet, fingers and toes. Posturing, muscular tone and movement are also noted. RESULTS: During the study period, there were 52 neonates born with isolated fetal limb abnormalities who had received a fetal anatomic survey in our ultrasound unit and 15 930 sonograms performed with normal findings; 36 out of the 52 had been prenatally diagnosed (detection rate 69%). The specificity of the protocol was 100% as there were no false positive cases, the positive predictive value was 100% and negative predictive value 99.8%. Forty-three of 52 neonates had normal genetic testing either prenatally or postnatally; 9 neonates did not undergo genetic testing. The average additional time required for this detailed protocol was <5 min for second trimester sonogram. CONCLUSION: A minimal investment in time for detailed evaluation of fetal limbs more than doubles the previously reported prenatal detection rate.

Background:Cesarean scar ectopic pregnancies (CSPs) are becoming more prevalent and can have an extremely poor prognosis, with high morbidity and mortality. Management guidelines for patients desiring conservative treatment should be established to improve outcomes. Case:A 33-year-old woman with a conservatively managed CSP now in the second trimester presented from an outside institution. After thorough counseling regarding potential maternal morbidity and extreme prematurity in the newborn based on clinical findings of progressive cervical shortening and vaginal spotting with a significant drop in hemoglobin, she abandoned conservative therapy and underwent a hysterectomy with the previable fetus in situ. Conclusion:As pregnancy progresses, danger to the mother and fetus can become severe and imminent. Progressive cervical shortening may be associated with much more significant bleeding than evidenced by spotting, indicating the importance of using cervical shortening in abandonment of conservative management to reduce impending morbidity and mortality.

BACKGROUND: Cervical length by transvaginal ultrasound to predict preterm labor is widely used in clinical practice. Virtually no data exist on cervical length measurement to differentiate true from false labor in term patients who present for labor check. False-positive diagnosis of true labor at term may lead to unnecessary hospital admissions, obstetrical interventions, resource utilization, and cost. OBJECTIVE: We sought to determine if cervical length by transvaginal ultrasound can differentiate true from false labor in term patients presenting for labor check. STUDY DESIGN: This is a prospective observational study of women presenting to labor and delivery with labor symptoms at 37-42 weeks, singleton cephalic gestation, regular uterine contractions (>/=4/20 min), intact membranes, and cervix /=4 cm and >/=80% effaced within 24 hours of cervical length measurement. In the absence of these outcomes, labor status was determined as false labor. Receiver operating characteristic curves were generated to assess the predictive ability of cervical length to differentiate true from false labor and were analyzed separately for primiparous and multiparous patients. The diagnostic accuracies of various cervical length cutoffs were determined. The relationship of cervical length and time to delivery was also analyzed including both use and nonuse of oxytocin. RESULTS: In all, 77 patients were included in the study; the prevalence of true labor was 58.4% (45/77). Patients who were in true labor had shorter cervical length as compared to those in false labor: median 1.3 cm (range 0.5-4.1) vs 2.4 cm (range 1.0-5.0), respectively (P < .001). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for primiparous patients was 0.88 (P < .001) and for multiparous patients was 0.76 (P < .01), both demonstrating good correlation. The area under the receiver operating characteristic curves were not significantly different between primiparous and multiparous (P = .23). The area under the receiver operating characteristic curve for primiparous and multiparous patients combined was 0.8 (P < .0001), indicating a good overall correlation between cervical length and its ability to differentiate true from false labor. Overall, a cervical length cutoff of