3-D ultrasound of the fetal ear and fetal autosomal trisomies: a pilot study of a new screening protocol.

Objective: We hypothesize that the rotation of the ear in fetuses with common autosomal trisomies will be markedly different from euploid fetuses and amenable to detection by 3-D ultrasound in the render mode.

Methods: Study participants (10 weeks 4 days through 19 weeks 0 days) underwent a 3-D rendering of the fetal face and ear along with other biometric measurements prior to invasive testing.

Results: Of the 348 patients who underwent chorionic villi sampling (CVS) (n = 208) or amniocentesis (n = 140), 18 were diagnosed with trisomy 21, 4 with trisomy 18, and 1 with trisomy 13.