[Prognostic value of a single umbilical artery. 87 cases].

Objective: To study the effect of a single umbilical artery on infant prognosis.

Method: Unicentric retrospective case-control study based on 18,425 births and semi-late pregnancy interruptions.

Results: There were 87 cases of single umbilical artery, frequently associated with a familial history of malformation in the sibhood (6.8%), gravid pathology (hypertension 11.5%, diabetes 6.8%), funicular anomaly (32%). One or several malformations were seen in 21% of the infants, the main cause of infant mortality (9%) and morbidity. The case-control study demonstrated that single umbilical artery corresponded to a moderate reduction in weight (-310 g), term (-1.4 weeks gestation), AGPAR scor at 1 and 5 minutes (-0.7) which was not significant when single umbilical artery was the sole pathology.

Conclusion: When occurring alone, single umbilical artery has little effect on infant prognosis which is more dependant on associated malformations and gravid pathologies determining antenatal and postnatal management.