Isolated fetal pericardial effusion follow-up: Should we worry?

Introduction And Objectives: Fetal pericardial effusion appears in different pathologies such as hydrops fetalis, heart structural or rhythm alterations, however, it can be observed in isolation but an increase in its incidence has been observed in relation to the presence of severe pathologies.

Methods: Analysis of all cases of IFPE detected in Aragon and assessed in a cardiological consultation for prenatal diagnosis of a tertiary hospital collected over ten years, as well as the evolution of the patients to the present.

Results: A sample of 38 fetuses was obtained from 37 pregnant women diagnosed with DPFA with spontaneous resolution in 86.8%. Two abortions (voluntary interruptions after prenatal diagnosis of 22q13 deletion and primary infection by cytomegalovirus) and one spontaneous fetal death were recorded. Pathological alterations were observed in 10/38 newborns: two patients with metabolic disease, two patients with chromosomopathies, one patient with pulmonary hypoplasia and unilateral hydronephrosis, one patient with hypertrophic cardiomyopathy, and four patients studied for alterations in psychomotor development and/or congenital ophthalmological or hearing disorders. The overall morbidity rate was 34.2% and death rate 15.7%. The detection of other ultrasound alterations and the alteration in the first trimester screening were significantly associated with the presence of pathology.

Conclusions: IFPE has been classically associated with a good prognosis, although it is sometimes related to clinical entities with high morbidity and mortality: more than a third of the patients in our sample are affected. An exhaustive pre and postnatal follow-up of these cases is recommended in order to perform an early intervention.