Objectives: Given the crucial role of the placenta in establishing a healthy pregnancy, reliable non-invasive methods to measure placental perfusion are desirable. The aim of this study is to determine the reproducibility and potential bias in different three-dimensional power Doppler (3DPD) methods assessing placenta perfusion.
Methods: Ten singleton pregnancies around 16 weeks of gestation, with an anteriorly located placenta and centrally inserted umbilical cord were included in this study. Eight different combinations of a specific placental sweep and sonobiopsy method were used to evaluate placental perfusion. Vascularization index (VI), flow index (FI) and vascularization-flow index (VFI) were determined offline using the 4D-view program. Reproducibility and repeatability of the methods, expressed as correlation coefficients and Bland-Altman mean differences, were calculated. Differences between sampling methods were analyzed using t-test or Mann-Whitney U test.
Results: Intra- and inter-class correlation coefficient (CC) was highest when using a spherical centrally placed sonobiopsy of 2 cm in a whole placenta sweep (method 1; IntraCC VI 0.985, FI 0.769, VFI 0.993, InterCC VI 0.986, FI 0.784, VFI 0.987). Overall, intraCCs were higher compared to interCCs. Lowest mean differences in VI and FI were found comparing spherical to manual sonobiopsies, whereas the mean differences in VFI were lowest when comparing central versus peripheral located sonobiopsies. Comparing the three vascular indices, best median intra- and interCC and lowest mean differences were found for VFI.
Conclusions: Three dimensional placental vascularization analysis showed best reproducibility using whole placental sweep volume and centrally located, spherical sonobiopsy of 2 cm.
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http://dx.doi.org/10.1016/j.ejogrb.2020.08.006 | DOI Listing |
Quant Imaging Med Surg
January 2025
Department of Imaging and Interventional Radiology, Faculty of Medicine, The Chinese University of Hong Kong, Hong Kong SAR, China.
Background: Diffusion-derived 'vessel density' (DDVD) is a surrogate of the area of micro-vessels per unit tissue. DDVD is calculated according to: DDVD (b0b50) = Sb0/ROIarea0 - Sb50/ROIarea50, where Sb0 and Sb50 refer to the tissue signal when is 0 or 50 s/mm. Due to the complexity of pre-eclampsia (PE), even a combination of risk factors and available tests cannot accurately diagnose or predict PE.
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January 2025
Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of Miami Miller School of Medicine, Miami, Florida, USA.
Twin reversed arterial perfusion (TRAP) sequence is an uncommon disease affecting monochorionic twin pregnancies. The diagnosis can be made by ultrasound allowing to plan optimal antenatal management. An electronic search was conducted from inception to July 2024 to systematically evaluate and compare the outcomes of different intrauterine interventions in this condition.
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January 2025
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, The First Affiliated Hospital of Jinan University, Jinan University, Guangzhou, China.
Preeclampsia (PE) is a pregnancy-specific complication and there remains no effective treatment. Given the limitations on medication use during pregnancy, exploring natural, safe, and effective drugs for PE is worthwhile. We investigate the causal relationship between ferroptosis, inflammation, and PE, and determine the protective effects of quercetin (QCT), a representative compound that is classified as a flavanol, against endothelial dysfunction.
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June 2025
Department of Surgery, Queen Elizabeth Central Hospital, Blantyre, Malawi.
Preeclampsia affects 2% to 8% of pregnancies worldwide and results in significantly high maternal and perinatal morbidity and mortality, with delivery being the only definitive treatment. It is not a single disorder, but rather a manifestation of an insult(s) to the uteroplacental unit -whether maternal, fetal, and/or placental. Multiple etiologies have been implicated, including uteroplacental ischemia, maternal infection and/or inflammation, maternal obesity, sleep disorders, hydatidiform mole, maternal intestinal dysbiosis, autoimmune disorders, fetal diseases, breakdown of maternal-fetal immune tolerance, placental aging, and endocrine disorders.
View Article and Find Full Text PDFJ Hypertens
February 2025
Key Laboratory of Shaanxi Province for Craniofacial Precision Medicine Research, College of Stomatology, Xi'an Jiaotong University, Xi'an, People's Republic of China.
Background: Preeclampsia (PE) is marked by hypertension and detrimental sterile inflammatory response. Despite the reported anti-inflammatory effect of pyridostigmine bromide (PYR) in different models, its anti-inflammatory mechanism in PE is unclear. This study assessed whether such an anti-inflammatory effect involves inhibition of placental Toll-like receptor 4 (TLR4) signaling.
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