Risk factors for shunting at 12 months following open fetal repair of spina bifida by mini-hysterotomy.

Objectives: Open spina bifida (OSB) is the most common neural tube defect. Prenatal repair reduces the need for ventriculoperitoneal shunting (VPS) due to hydrocephalus from 80-90% to 40-50%. We aimed to determine which variables work as risk factors for VPS at 12 months of age in our population.

Open fetal myelomeningocele repair at a university hospital: surgery and pregnancy outcomes.

Purpose: Myelomeningocele (MMC) is an open neural tube defect that causes great morbidity. Prenatal open repair is the standard treatment; however, there are many complications related to the procedure. This study reports preliminary findings of open in utero repair of MMC in a public tertiary hospital in Brazil and describes factors that could be associated with increased surgical morbidity.

Women's Obstetric History and Midtrimester Cervical Length Measurements by 2D/3D and Doppler Ultrasound.

Objective:  The aim of the present study was to compare the obstetric history and both two- and tri-dimensional ultrasound parameters according to different cervical lengths.

Methods:  The present cross-sectional study analyzed 248 midtrimester pregnant women according to cervical length and compared the data with the obstetric history and 2D/3D ultrasound parameters. Patients were divided into 3 groups according to cervical length: The Short Cervix group for cervical lengths ≥ 15 mm and < 25 mm ( = 68), the Very Short Cervix group for cervical lengths < 15 mm ( = 18) and the Control group, composed of 162 pregnant women with uterine cervical lengths ≥ 25 mm.

Emergency cerclage: gestational and neonatal outcomes.

Background: The gestational and neonatal outcomes of women with early cervical dilatation undergoing emergency cerclage were evaluated and compared with women treated with expectant management and bed rest.

Methods: Retrospective analysis of pregnant women admitted between 2001 and 2017 with a diagnosis of early cervical dilatation and/or bulging membranes. Patients with a singleton pregnancy of a fetus without malformations, between 16 and 25 weeks and 6 days, with cervical dilatation of 1 to 3 cm were included; patients who delivered or miscarried within 2 days after admission were excluded.

The role of three-dimensional ultrasound in pregnancies submitted to cerclage.

Objective: Cervical cerclage is the standard treatment for cervical incompetence (CI); however, there is still a high risk of preterm birth for women who undergo this treatment. The aim of this study was to longitudinally evaluate findings on two-dimensional transvaginal ultrasonography (2DTVUS) and three-dimensional transvaginal ultrasonography (3DTVUS) that could be related to gestational age at birth.

Methods: A total of 68 pregnant women who were treated with cerclage were evaluated by 2DTVUS and 3DTVUS in the second and third trimesters of pregnancy.

Validation of QF-PCR for prenatal diagnoses in a Brazilian population.

Objectives:: Quantitative fluorescence polymerase chain reaction (QF-PCR) is a rapid and reliable method for screening aneuploidies, but in Brazil, it is not used in public services. We investigated the accuracy of QF-PCR for the prenatal recognition of common aneuploidies and compared these results with cytogenetic results in our laboratory.

Method:: A ChromoQuant QF-PCR kit containing 24 primer pairs targeting loci on chromosomes 21, 13, 18, X and Y was employed to identify aneuploidies of the referred chromosomes.

Analysis of fetal and maternal results from fetal genetic invasive procedures: an exploratory study at a University Hospital.

Objective: To characterize the indications of pregnant women who sought the Fetal Medicine Services of the Hospital das Clínicas, at the Medical School of the Universidade de São Paulo for performing invasive diagnostic procedures, and to evaluate the results of fetal karyotypes and their pregnancies.

Methods: A retrospective and observational study on pregnant women who underwent chorionic villus sampling (CVS), amniocentesis, and cordocentesis in the period from February, 2005 to December, 2009. Other diagnostic or therapeutic procedures were not included.

Use of cell-free fetal nucleic acids in maternal blood for prenatal diagnosis: the reality of this scenario in Brazil.

The discovery of cell-free fetal nucleic acids in the plasma of pregnant women has allowed the development of new, noninvasive prenatal diagnostic tests for the determination of fetal gender and Rh. These tests have been implemented in the public health system in several countries of Europe for over five years. The new possibilities for diagnostic use of these technologies are the detection of fetal chromosomal aneuploidies, monogenic fetal disorders, and placental-related disorders, subjects that have been intensively studied by several groups around the world.