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Infection during pregnancy is common and the developing fetal brain is vulnerable to vertical transmission due to immaturity of the fetal immune system. Infection is a major cause of multiple organ abnormalities, including the neuraxis, due to the neurotropism of the infectious agents. This review sets out to give an overview of fetal infection, review the general principles of the nature and timing of the infectious insult with respect to outcomes, review the neuroimaging of infection by ultrasound and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), and review the various pathogens involved, including the two most common, cytomegalovirus (CMV) and Toxoplasma, and also other common viral and nonviral infections.

Varicoceles are abnormally dilated pampiniform plexus veins. They may present with pain or can be discovered during investigations of infertility. The relationship between varicoceles and infertility remains controversial. Varicoceles may be treated surgically or by embolization.

This paper is based on a literature review from 2011 to 2016. The paper is divided into two main sections. The first section relates to technical advances in fetal imaging techniques, including fetal motion compensation, imaging at 3.0 T, 3-D T2-weighted MRI, susceptibility-weighted imaging, computed tomography, morphometric analysis, diffusion tensor imaging, spectroscopy and fetal behavioral assessment. The second section relates to clinical updates, including cerebral lamination, migrational anomalies, midline anomalies, neural tube defects, posterior fossa anomalies, sulcation/gyration and hypoxic–ischemic insults.

Currently ocular biometric measurements are defined by US and are measured from the orbital walls. These bony landmarks cannot be seen by MRI, and therefore these measurements cannot be directly applied. To define measurements of normal growth of the fetal eyes using MRI. Transorbital views were analyzed in 198 fetal MR examinations. The ocular diameter (OD) and interocular and binocular distances (IOD and BOD) were measured and were plotted against gestational age. Fetuses with abnormalities affecting the eyes were evaluated separately. Of 198 scans, 146 had suitable images, 35 of which were abnormal. Normal growth of BOD, IOD and OD were determined, and compared with the respective already established US data. Normal growth charts were derived from a cohort of 111 normal fetuses. Because the margins of the vitreous are inside the bony orbit, at the same gestational age measurements of the BOD and OD are always less than the corresponding measurements by US, and those of the IOD are always more. Normal growth charts for MRI can now be used to support suspected diagnoses of orbital and ocular pathologies and the syndromes that give rise to them, and many examples are demonstrated.

BACKGROUND The ilioinguinal (II)/iliohypogastric (IH) nerve block is a safe, frequently used block that has been improved in efficacy and safety by the use of ultrasound guidance. We assessed the frequency with which pediatric anesthesiologists with limited experience with ultrasound-guided regional anesthesia could correctly identify anatomical structures within the inguinal region. Our primary outcome was to compare the frequency of correct identification of the transversus abdominis (TA) muscle with the frequency of correct identification of the II/IH nerves. We used 2 ultrasound machines with different capabilities to assess a potential equipment effect on success of structure identification and time taken for structure identification. METHODS Seven pediatric anesthesiologists with

Fetal magnetic resonance provides a new tool in the imaging of the posterior fossa and is proving useful in cases that are difficult to assess sonographically by allowing further assessment of the fourth ventricle, cisterna magna, and vermian growth and development. We describe various criteria with which to evaluate vermian growth, including vermian biometry and the relationship between the superior and inferior lobes. We demonstrate 2 markers of normal vermian development: the primary fissure and fastigial point. We illustrate the tegmento-vermian angle, "closure" of the fourth ventricle, and communication of the fourth ventricle with the basal cisterns during development and in several disorders. We correlate those features with the expected embryological course of development and illustrate identification of these features and associated abnormalities of the posterior fossa, brain stem, and central nervous system in mid-trimester scans of fetuses with abnormal development. Correlation with contemporaneous ultrasound examinations is demonstrated.

Objective The purpose of this study was to show the normal sonographic embryologic anatomy of the cisterna magna septa, fourth ventricle, and cerebellar vallecula at various stages of development and our experience with their variable appearance in multiple planes and to discuss the probable relationship between the cisterna magna septa, Dandy-Walker continuum, mega cisterna magna, and persistent Blake's pouch. Methods Retrospective and prospective selection of examples of cisterna magna septa was performed over approximately a 12-month period. Standard and nonstandard imaging planes were adopted as necessary. Results The septa are typically seen inferoposterior to the cerebellar vermis, usually straight and parallel, arising at the cerebellovermian angle and coursing posteriorly to the occipital bone. The cisterna magna septa become contiguous with the roof of the fourth ventricle inferior to the cerebellar vermis. The cerebrospinal fluid space enclosed between the cisterna magna septa is in direct contiguity with the fourth ventricle via the vallecula and is always completely anechoic because it develops intra- and not extra-axially. Conclusions We propose that the cisterna magna septa represent the walls of Blake's pouch, a phylogenetic vestigial structure observed during ontogeny. Additionally, our observations support current opinion that a persistent Blake's pouch and mega cisterna magna represent (less severe) abnormalities within the Dandy-Walker continuum. The cisterna magna septa therefore are a marker of normal development of the roof of the rhombencephalon. Deviation from their normal appearances should prompt a closer assessment for associated abnormalities of the cerebellum, vermis, and brain stem by additional imaging in orthogonal planes with either sonography or magnetic resonance imaging.