Ultrasound shear wave elastography of the placenta: a potential tool for early detection of fetal growth restriction.

Background: Sonographic placental elastography has recently been employed as a non-invasive tool to investigate the structural alterations associated with various conditions such as pre-eclampsia, gestational diabetes and fetal growth restriction (FGR). The study was conducted based on the hypothesis that the placental elasticity might differ with varying severity of FGR and with that of appropriate for gestational age (AGA) pregnancies.

Methods: This study involved 121 pregnant women, with 54 in the normal group and 67 in the FGR group, which was defined as the fetal weight below the 10th percentile for gestational age.