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Purpose: To explore prenatal ultrasonic features and prognosis of the persistent left superior vena cava (PLSVC) complicated with mild narrow aorta. Materials and Methods: A retrospective study was conducted involving 1348 fetuses diagnosed with PLSVC prenatally between January 2016 and December 2019. Forty‐five fetuses with PLSVC associated with mild narrow aorta were selected from the cohort as the study group and 79 fetuses with isolated PLSCV were recruited randomly as the control group. All clinical and ultrasound results, including images and parameters of cardiac structures, were reviewed retrospectively. General conditions, ultrasound (US) measurements, and fetal prognosis were compared between the groups. Results: Aorta valve diameter (AOD), Z‐score of aorta valve (AODz‐score), aortic isthmus diameter (AOIsD), and pulmonary diameter (PAD)/AOD were significantly different in study group than control group no matter in the second or third trimester. Thirty‐eight fetuses in study group were born with favorable outcomes after long‐term follow‐up. A total of 13.16% (5/38) remain mild narrow aorta and 3 of them showed smaller left ventricle after 3 years follow up. Prenatal AODz‐score in infants remains mild narrow aorta after 2 years aged was higher than ones' aorta return to normal (P =.01), especially when AODz‐score >1.725. Moreover, when prenatal ratio of AOIsD/left subclavian artery was <1.12, it was more likely that the aorta would remain mildly narrow at age 2. Conclusion: Fetuses diagnosed with PLSVC with mild narrow aorta had favorable prognosis. AODz‐score and AOIsD/left subclavian artery may be two predictors that reveal the risk of a mildly narrowed aorta remaining after birth. Access the CME test here and search by article title. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Objective: To investigate the relationship between congenital umbilical–portal–systemic venous shunt (UPSVs) and fetal outcome. Methods: The ultrasonographic and genetic characteristics of 11 cases of UPSVS were retrospectively analyzed and followed up to postnatal. Results: Four cases of ductus venosus -- systemic shunt (DVSS), one case of extrahepatic portal -- systemic shunt (EHPSS), and one case of umbilical systemic shunt (USS) combined with intrahepatic portal-systemic shunt (IHPSS), six cases of intrahepatic portal-systemic shunt (IHPSS) were observed. chromosomal abnormalities were observed in 9.1% (1/11), other ultrasonic abnormalities in 54.5% (6/11), cardiothoracic ratio increase in 45.5% (5/11), fetal growth restriction in 36.4% (4/11), edema was in 9.1% (1/11) and live birth was in 72.7% (8/11). Conclusion: The incidence of IHPSS is the highest and the outcome is the best. Shunt of DVSS and IHPSS can be closed spontaneously after birth. When the prenatal diagnosis is congenital UPSVs, chromosomal abnormalities and other ultrasonic abnormalities should be required further examination, and the growth and development of the fetus should be closely monitored.

Objective:  This study aimed to explore the efficiency of ultrasound (US) in prenatal diagnosis and prognosis of Pierre Robin sequence (PRS) of 18 cases., Study Design:  A total of 79,305 women admitted for prenatal US examinations were recruited from January 2017 to December 2020. Eighteen cases of PRS fetuses were selected form the cohort and 40 cases of isolated micrognathia were recruited randomly as control group. All the clinical and imaging results were retrospectively reviewed. General condition, US measurements, and prognosis of fetuses were compared between groups., Results:  Cleft palate, glossoptosis, and micrognathia were found in all 18 fetuses with PRS by prenatal US. Compared with the isolated micrognathia group, there were no significant differences in the PRS group in examination of maternal age, gestational weeks at assessment, and gender of fetuses, but significant lower measures in inferior facial angle, jaw index, and frontal nasal-mental angle (each p  < 0.05). Twelve fetuses were defined to have other associated malformations. Ear malformations were the most common associated malformations with a prevalence of 44.4% (8/18). All of the18 cases were confirmed with PRS after delivery or autopsy. Two delivered infants were found bucking easily, one baby was spitting up frequently but growth showed normal., Conclusion:  Prenatal detection of PRS with US examination is highly efficient. Even with the triad of malformations, isolated PRS had good outcomes following initial stabilization and management in the neonatal period. Prenatal detection of Pierre Robin syndrome with targeted US examination is efficient in discerning characteristics of this rare syndrome. Even with the triad of malformations, isolated PRS had good outcomes following initial stabilization and management in the neonatal period., Key Points: · Prenatal diagnosis of fetal PRS is of great clinical importance.. · Micrognathia has been identified as the primary feature of PRS.. · Posterior displacement of the tongue may cause acute neonatal respiratory distress.. · Even with triad malformation, isolated PRS seemed to have good outcomes.., Competing Interests: None declared., (Thieme. All rights reserved.)

Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest.

Objective: To evaluate the value of echocardiographic parameters in predicting early spontaneous closure of ductus arteriosus in premature infants., Methods: 222 premature infants admitted to the neonatal ward of our hospital were selected, and patent ductus arteriosus was detected by echocardiography 48 h after birth. On the 7th day, whether the ductus arteriosus was closed naturally in this cohort was observed. The infants whose ductus arteriosus were not closed were identified as the PDA group ( n  = 109), and the other infants were included in the control group ( n  = 113). The echocardiographic parameters of the two groups of premature infants at 48 h after birth were single-factor statistically and Pearson correlation analyzed, and the parameters with statistically significant differences in single-factor analyzed were selected for multivariate logistic stepwise regression analysis., Results: The ductus arteriosus shunt velocity and the pressure difference between the descending aorta and the pulmonary artery (ΔPs) in the PDA group were lower than those in the control group ( P  < 0.05). The pulmonary artery pressure (PASP) in the PDA group was higher than that in the control group ( P  < 0.05). According to the multivariate logistic stepwise regression analysis, only the maximum shunt velocity of ductus arteriosus was correlated with early spontaneous closure of ductus arteriosus in 48 h first echocardiographic parameters ( P  = 0.049). The receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curve indicates the optimal critical point of echocardiographic ductus arteriosus shunt velocity in premature infants 48 h after birth was 1.165 m/s., Conclusion: Echocardiographic parameters are of great value in predicting the early spontaneous closure of ductus arteriosus in premature infants. In particular, the ductus arteriosus shunt velocity is correlated with the early spontaneous closure of ductus arteriosus., Competing Interests: The authors declare that the research was conducted in the absence of any commercial or financial relationships that could be construed as a potential conflict of interest., (© 2023 He, Yang, Gan, Tang, Ran and Zhang.)

Purpose:  To determine the association between levator avulsion and urinary stress incontinence (USI) by 3/4D transperineal ultrasound., Materials and Methods:  842 patients who were admitted to our hospital from 2016 to 2019 were recruited for our study. 3D/4D transperineal ultrasound was performed. After standard interview and clinical evaluation, general conditions and levator hiatus data were collected and measured to compare with each group. The odds ratio (OR) of USI symptoms or ultrasound features with levator avulsion were calculated., Results:  A total of 593 women were studied: 204 suffered from levator avulsion (96 cases of left-side avulsion, 80 cases of right-side avulsion and 28 cases of bilateral avulsion) and 389 women had no avulsion. The gravidity and episiotomy conditions of the avulsion groups were significantly different from the no-avulsion group. Significant differences were found in the transverse diameters and anteroposterior diameters between the levator avulsion group and the no-avulsion group, but there was no difference among the avulsion groups, regardless of whether the patient was at rest or performing the Valsalva maneuver. Interestingly, a significant difference was found in the presence of USI symptoms between the uni-avulsion group and the no-avulsion group. The odds ratio (OR) of USI symptoms in the uni-avulsion group is 2.786 (95 %CI, 1.663-4.669), but 0.939 (95 %CI, 0.276-3.199) for the bilateral avulsion and no-avulsion groups., Conclusion:  Unilateral levator avulsion may be a risk factor for urinary stress incontinence., Competing Interests: The authors declare that they have no conflict of interest., (Thieme. All rights reserved.)