Abstract
We investigated the umbilical vein volume flow (UVVF) at 11–14 weeks in monochorionic-diamniotic (MCDA) twins, focusing on the occurrence of complications. We considered 87 MCDA pregnancies. We used “E-flow” to detect the umbilical vein and measured the mean velocities and diameters of veins, also calculating the UVVF. Pregnancies were divided into four groups: a (twin-to-twin transfusion, TTTS); b (selective intrauterine growth restriction, sIUGR); c (discordance of fluid, DF); and d (with “normal” outcome). The main outcome of the study was the assessment of the difference of UVVF between twin 1 and twin 2 (larger and smaller twin). In eight of eight pairs of group a and seven of seven pairs of group b, the UVVF of fetuses 1 were significantly different than fetuses 2 (P<0.05). The UVVFs of fetuses 2 of group a were significantly lower in respect to the UVVFs of fetuses 2 of group d (P<0.05). We provide evidence of an important difference in UVVF in pairs that successively developed TTTS or sIUGR. The smaller fetuses of group a (TTTS) showed a lower venous return than fetuses 2 of group d (normal). First-trimester UVVF is lower in fetuses with a smaller crown-rump length in twin pairs at risk of TTTS or IUGR.
References
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The authors stated that there are no conflicts of interest regarding the publication of this article.
©2014 by Walter de Gruyter Berlin/Boston
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Articles in the same Issue
- Frontmatter
- Review articles
- The relationship between gestational weight gain and fetal growth: time to take stock?
- Risk factors for pregnancy-associated venous thromboembolism: a review
- Academy’s Corner
- Africa is only 14 km away from my country
- Primary prevention of preterm birth
- Original articles – Obstetrics
- Mother knows best? Comparing primiparous parturients’ expectations and predictions with actual birth outcomes
- Silent chorioamnionitis and associated pregnancy outcomes: a review of clinical data gathered over a 16-year period
- Clinical factors associated with failed trials of labor in late preterm and term twin pregnancies
- Relation of placental diagnosis in stillbirth to fetal maceration and gestational age at delivery
- Evaluation of a novel placental alpha microglobulin-1 (PAMG-1) test to predict spontaneous preterm delivery
- The relationship of praise/criticism to learning during obstetrical simulation: a randomized clinical trial
- Sickle cell disease and pregnancy outcomes: population-based study on 8.8 million births
- Differences between external and internal fetal heart rate monitoring during the second stage of labor: a prospective observational study
- Perinatal management of preterm premature ruptured membranes affects neonatal prognosis
- Impact of the nitric oxide-donor pentaerythrityl-tetranitrate on perinatal outcome in risk pregnancies: a prospective, randomized, double-blinded trial
- Umbilical vein volume flow in monochorionic twin pairs at 11–14 weeks
- Gestational weight gain according to number of fetuses in Japanese women
- Original article – Fetus
- Prenatal diagnosis of sex chromosome aneuploidies and disorders of sex development – a retrospective analysis of 11-year data
- Short communication
- Reference range for amniotic fluid index measurements in a Brazilian population
- Congress Calendar
- Congress Calendar