Open AccessIntra‐Uterine Growth and Fatal Fetal Abnormality
Author(s) -
Kirkinen Pertti,
Jouppila Pentti,
Herva Riitta
Publication year - 1983
Publication title -
acta obstetricia et gynecologica scandinavica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 1.401
H-Index - 102
eISSN - 1600-0412
pISSN - 0001-6349
DOI - 10.3109/00016348309155757
Subject(s) - medicine , obstetrics , fetus , growth retardation , polyhydramnios , abnormality , gestational age , amniocentesis , pregnancy , fetal growth , abortion , chorionic villus sampling , gynecology , gestation , prenatal diagnosis , genetics , psychiatry , biology
. To study intra‐uterine growth in pregnancies complicated by fatal abnormality of the fetus, 73 pregnancies involving fetal or neonatal death caused by malformation, chromosomal aberration or Mendelian disease were evaluated. Small‐for‐gestational age newborns were found in 45% of the patients, and this finding was typical of 18‐trisomies, amnion adhesion syndrome fetuses and multimalformed fetuses. Pregnancies affected by a Mendelian disease or a single fetal malformation mostly presented normal intra‐uterine growth. In 25% of the patients, the symphyseal‐fun‐dal growth was retarded; this retardation started on average in the 25th gestational week. Polyhydramnios was present in 30% of the patients and was expressed in growth acceleration of the symphyseal‐fundal measurement from the 28th gestational week. In 45% of the small‐for‐gestational‐age fetuses the biparietal growth showed low profile type retardation. The brain‐sparing phenomenon in growth was found in 21%. To assess the prospects of the conceivable modes of treatment, the need for an exact diagnostic evaluation of all pregnancies complicated by intra‐uterine growth retardation and a consideration of the need for diagnostic amniocentesis in cases of early growth retardation is emphasized. This also applies to the time after legal abortion.