No funding or competing interests to declare.

This paper reports 15 examinations by magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) performed in pregnant women whose fetuses had cerebral malformations identified by sonography. In all the cases the fetuses were immobilized by ultrasound-guided intravenous or intramuscular curarization. The diagnoses by MRI and ultrasound differed only in one case where an occipital meningocele had first been suggested. No cerebral abnormalities were demonstrated in this case by the MRI study, and this was confirmed at birth. In the remaining 14 cases, MRI confirmed the ultrasound diagnosis of cerebral malformation. In four of these cases, MRI added some additional information to the ultrasound diagnosis of ventriculomegaly by detecting agenesis of the corpus callosum in two fetuses, one Chiari malformation and one triventricular hydrocephalus. Another two ultrasound diagnoses of microcephaly actually proved to be semilobar holoprosencephaly with MRI. In the following cases, the MRI diagnoses concurred with those of ultrasound, and was therefore used unnecessarily despite providing further anatomical details of the lesions: two cases of agenesis of the corpus callosum, one case of anencephaly, a cystic hygroma of the neck, an alobar holoprosencephaly, a Dandy-Walker malformation and a mild isolated hydrocephalus associated with diaphragmatic hernia. In one case of iniencephaly, sonography offered closer approximation to the correct diagnosis. The results obtained unequivocally confirm the high sensitivity of ultrasound examinations in the prenatal screening of cerebral malformations and show that MRI proves to be complementary in uncertain cases or when more accurate anatomical detail is required.

Our data confirm that the prevalence of SCH is increased in PCOS women. The presence of SCH is associated with endocrine and metabolic imbalances of PCOS, and the excessive body weight seems to promote this interplay.

The objective of the study was to investigate the effects of 6 months of melatonin administration on clinical, endocrine, and metabolic features of women affected by polycystic ovary syndrome (PCOS). This is a prospective cohort study including 40 normal-weight women with PCOS between January and September 2016, enrolled in an academic research environment. Ultrasonographic pelvic examinations, hirsutism score evaluation, hormonal profile assays, oral glucose tolerance test, and lipid profile at baseline and after 6 months of melatonin administration were performed. Melatonin treatment significantly decreased androgens levels (free androgen index: P < .05; testosterone: P < .01; 17 hydroxyprogesterone: P < .01). Follicle-stimulating hormone levels significantly raised (P < .01), and anti-Mullerian hormone serum levels significantly dropped after 6 months of melatonin treatment (P < .01). No significant changes occurred in glucoinsulinemic and lipid parameters after treatment except a significant decrease of low-density lipoprotein cholesterol. Almost 95% of participants experienced an amelioration of menstrual cycles. Until now, only few data have been published about the role of melatonin in women with PCOS. This is the first study focused on the effects of exogenous oral melatonin administration on the clinical, endocrine, and metabolic characteristics of patients with PCOS. After 6 months of treatment, melatonin seems to improve menstrual irregularities and biochemical hyperandrogenism in women with PCOS through a direct, insulin-independent effect on the ovary. Based on our results, melatonin could be considered a potential future therapeutic agent for women affected by PCOS.

Both treatments improved the glyco-insulinaemic features of obese PCOS patients, but only metformin seems to exert a beneficial effect on the endocrine and clinical features of the syndrome.