Zusammenfassung
Objective To evaluate the development during gestation and up to 1 year postnatally of isolated small ventricular septal defects (VSDs) not visible by gray-scale imaging and detected only on color Doppler fetal echocardiography. Methods This was a retrospective analysis of 146 fetuses with isolated VSDs detectable only on color Doppler echocardiography. Complete sequential grayscale, color ...
Zusammenfassung
Objective To evaluate the development during gestation and up to 1 year postnatally of isolated small ventricular septal defects (VSDs) not visible by gray-scale imaging and detected only on color Doppler fetal echocardiography. Methods This was a retrospective analysis of 146 fetuses with isolated VSDs detectable only on color Doppler echocardiography. Complete sequential grayscale, color Doppler and spectral Doppler examination of the fetal heart were performed. The following variables were documented: site of the VSD, presence of extracardiac or chromosomal anomalies, outcome of the pregnancy and evolution of the defect up to 1 year postnatally. Results A total of 113 fetuses reached their first year of postnatal life, 23 pregnancies were terminated, there were three stillbirths/neonatal deaths, and seven were lost to follow-up. It was observed that 32.7% (n = 37) of all defects in neonates alive after 1 year closed in utero, 44.3% (n = 50) of defects closed spontaneously within the first postnatal year, and 23.0% (n = 26) of defects did not close. In all, a comparable number of perimembranous and muscular septal defects closed spontaneously in utero and during the first year of postnatal life. Among 35 fetuses with extracardiac anomalies 51.4% (n = 18) were euploid. Conclusion Small VSDs, detectable only by color Doppler echocardiography, show a high spontaneous intrauterine and postnatal closure rate. These findings might be of value for prenatal parental counseling. Copyright (c) 2006 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
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