Objective To explore the diagnostic value of ultrasonography and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in placenta accreta.Methods Totally 150 pregnancy women in Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital from January 2015 to December 2016 were selected into the clinical data.According to the location of the placenta in the uterus,150 pregnancy women were divided into the anterior (n =80) and posterior (n =70) groups.The sensitivity,specificity,positive predictive value and negative predictive value of ultrasound and MRI were calculated.The sonographic and MRI features between placenta implantation and non placental implantation were compared.Results There were no statistically significant difference for ultrasound and MRI sensitivity (96.43％ vs 85.71％,P =0.89),specificity (88.46％ vs 96.15％,P =0.37),positive predictive value (81.82％ vs 92.31％,P =0.95) and negative predictive value (97.87％ vs 92.59％,P =0.42) in anterior group.The MRI sensitivity (96.67％ vs 66.67％,P＜0.01),positive predictive value (96.67％ vs 83.33％,P ＜ 0.01) and negative predictive value (97.50％ vs 78.26,P ＜0.01) in the posterior group were higher than those in the ultrasound.Ultrasound showed that the incidence of localexpansion of the uterus and the increased placental vessels in placenta accreta was higher than that in non placental accreta (x2 =26.92,26.83,and 63.77,P ＜ 0.01).MRI showed that the incidence of local swelling,increased placental vascularity and low T2 signaling rates in placenta accreta was higher than that in non placental accrete (x2 =23.75,17.46,18.86,P ＜ 0.01).Conclusions Ultrasonography and MRI has high diagnostic value in placenta accreta.MRI is superior in the diagnosis of placenta accreta in the posterior uterus than in the anterior uterus.

Objective:To analyze the prenatal ultrasound manifestation of trisomy 21 syndrome and investigate the clinical significance of prenatal ultrasound in screening 21-trisomy syndrome.Methods:A retrospective analysis of prenatal ultrasound results of 200 fetuses diagnosed with 21-trisomy syndrome by karyotype from May 2017 to August 2018 in Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital. Ultrasound abnormalities were divided into isolated soft markers, simple structural abnormalities, complex ultrasound markers. The relationship between these markers and trisomy 21 was analysed.Results:200 fetuses with trisomy 21 syndrome diagnosed by karyotype, in which 39 cases (19.5%, 39/200) abnormalities were detected by ultrasound, including soft indexes and structural abnormalities/other abnormalities. The rates of isolated soft indexes, simple structural abnormalities/ other abnormalities and complex ultrasound markers were 15.5%(31/200), 2.0%(4/200), 2.0%(4/200), respectively. The most common of soft markers in the first trimester was thickened nuchal translucency (4/18), thickened nuchal fold (13.19%, 24/182) in the second trimester, followed by nasal bone dysplasia, tricuspid regurgitation and polyhydramnios (1.65%, 3/182). The most common structural malformations in the second trimester was cardiovascular malformation (3.30%, 6/182).Conclusions:Prenatal ultrasound has a role to play in the screening of 21-trisomy syndrome, but exerts certain limitations. It is necessary to strengthen the understanding of the ultrasonographic features of trisomy 21 and improve the detection rate of abnormal indicators. Meanwhile, it should be combined with serological screening, non-invasive prenatal testing technology to increase the detection rate of trisomy 21.

Objective:To establish the reference values and neurological intervention cutoffs for cerebral ventricular size in neonates born at 33 +0-41 +6 weeks of gestation and to investigate the influential factors and reliability of the related indices. Methods:This study prospectively recruited 1 370 1-to 7-day neonates born or hospitalized at the Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital from February to August 2021. All the neonates, who were born between 33 +0 and 41 +6 weeks of gestation, were subjected to ultrasound scanning to obtain the indices, including ventricular index (VI), anterior horn width (AHW), thalamo-occipital distance (TOD), and ventricular height (VH). The reference value and neurological intervention cutoff for each index were set. Quantile regression was used to estimate the correlation between each index and continuous covariates [gestational age at birth (GA) and birth weight (BW)]. Mann-Whitney U test was used to analyze the differences in the medians of indices in different categorical covariates groups (males/females, left/right lateral ventricles, vaginal delivery/cesarean section, and singleton/multiple births). Intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC) calculated by a two-way mixed effect model and absolute agreement was used to access intra-rater reliability; ICC via a two-way random effect model and absolute agreement was utilized to rate inter-rater reliability (pool reliability: ICC below 0.50; moderate reliability: ICC between 0.50 and 0.75; good reliability: ICC between 0.75 and 0.90; excellent reliability: ICC exceeding 0.90). Results:The upper limits of reference values for AHW, TOD, VI, and VH in 555 (40.5%) preterm neonates were 2.7-3.5 mm, 20.9-22.5 mm, 12.6-13.7 mm, and 3.8-4.9 mm, and in 815 (59.5%) term newborns were 3.4-4.3 mm, 18.6-21.3 mm, 14.2-14.7 mm, and 3.4-3.8 mm, respectively. The cutoff of neurosurgical intervention for each index was the upper limit of reference value plus 4 mm. AHW median was positively correlated with GA [partial regression coefficient (PRC): 0.12, P<0.05], while TOD and VH medians were negatively correlated with GA (PRC:－0.31 and－0.06, both P<0.05). VI, AHW, and TOD medians were positively associated with BW (PRC: 0.46, 0.23, and 0.97, all P<0.05). The medians of VH, AHW, and TOD in the left cerebral ventricular exceeded those in the right cerebral ventricular, respectively (VH: 2.0 vs 1.8 mm, U=836 071.50; AHW: 1.8 vs 1.7 mm, U=874 141.50; TOD: 13.6 vs 12.5 mm, U=738 409.00, all P<0.05). The medians of AHW and VI in male neonates were greater than those in female newborns, respectively (AHW: 1.8 vs 1.7 mm, U=834 124.00; VI: 11.1 vs 10.8 mm, U=884 156.50, both P<0.05). The neonates delivered vaginally had greater AHW median, but smaller TOD median than those delivered by cesarean section (AHW: 2.0 vs 1.6 mm, U=685 546.00, P<0.001; TOD: 13.1 vs 12.9 mm, U=850 797.00, P=0.010). The AHW median in singleton newborns exceeded that in multiple births (1.9 vs 1.4 mm, U=356 999.00, P<0.001). The lower limits of 95% confidence intervals for intra-rater and inter-rater ICCs exceeded 0.75 and 0.50, respectively. Conclusion:Reference values and surgical intervention thresholds for VI, AHW, TOD, VH of newborns with a gestational age of 33 +0-41 +6 weeks were preliminarily established, and the reliability of these indicators were verified.

Objective:To evaluate the cervical elasticity in pregnant women with singleton pregnancies exhibiting symptoms of threatened preterm labor using E-cervix elastography, and provide a basis for assessing the risk of preterm birth.Methods:This prospective cohort study included pregnant women with singleton pregnancies between 20 +0 and 32 +6 weeks of gestation and no history of preterm birth who developed symptoms of threatened preterm labor and attended the obstetrics outpatient clinic of the Hunan Provincial Maternal and Child Health Care Hospital from May 2022 to May 2023. Several cervical elastography data, including cervical length (CL), hardness ratio (HR), internal ostium (IOS), and external ostium (EOS), were obtained using E-cervix technology, and the differences in these data were compared between women with different pregnancy outcomes (preterm or full-term birth) or different CLs. Statistical analysis was performed using covariance analysis (adjusted for gestational age), Chi-square test or corrected Chi-square test, and Pearson correlation analysis. Results:A total of 120 pregnant women were included, with 39 (32.5%) in the preterm group and 81 (67.5%) in the full-term group. There were 41 women (34.2%) with CL≤25 mm and 79 (65.8%) with CL>25 mm. Among the 41 women with CL≤25 mm, 26 had preterm birth and 15 delivered at term. Compared with the full-term group, the preterm group had a lower cervical HR [(35.75±8.94)% vs. (61.30±10.69)%, F=156.88], but higher IOS and EOS (0.47±0.13 vs. 0.31±0.09, F=54.99; 0.45±0.11 vs. 0.34±0.08, F=34.57) (all P<0.001). The patients with CL≤25 mm had a lower cervical HR [(43.17±14.32)% vs. (58.09±13.94)%, F=26.03], but higher IOS and EOS (0.46±0.14 vs. 0.32±0.08, F=38.71; 0.44±0.12 vs.0.34±0.08, F=21.36) as compared with those with CL>25 mm, with all differences being statistically significant (all P<0.001). Among the women with CL≤25 mm, preterm birth cases had lower cervical HR but higher IOS and EOS than those delivered at term (all P<0.001). In both CL≤25 mm and CL>25 mm groups, the preterm birth rate was higher in patients with HR<50% than in those with HR≥50% [95.5% (21/22) vs. 5/19, χ2=21.01, P<0.001; 61.9% (13/21) vs. 0.0% (0/58), corrected χ2=38.59, P<0.001]. Besides, an increased preterm birth rate was also observed in patients with HR<40% as compared with those with HR≥40% regardless of the CL [CL≤25 mm: 18/18 vs. 34.8% (8/23), χ2=18.51, P<0.001; CL>25 mm: 11/14 vs. 3.1% (2/65), corrected χ2=42.42, P<0.001]. Pearson correlation analysis showed that there was a significant positive correlation between CL and HR ( r=0.51, P<0.001). Conclusion:E-cervix elastography can quantify the hardness of cervical tissue, and identify truly "soft" cervices that are associated with high risk of preterm birth, showing great potential as a more efficient new technology for predicting preterm birth.