The placenta is fundamental for fetal development. It combines the functions of an endocrine organ, kidneys, lungs and intestines, purifying catabolites, oxygenating and nourishing the conceptus. Its fetal portion is the largest part develops from the chorionic sac. The maternal portion, which is smaller, is originated in the endometrium, more specifically in the decidua basalis. The placenta starts its function closer to the fourth week of gestation, when anatomical arrangements for the physiological exchanges are already established. The circulatory function of the placenta appears at an early stage of embryo-placental development and it is strongly related to fetal growth, to the placental size and to uterine and umbilical blood flows. Therefore, an adequate placental angiogenesis is critical for the establishment of a normal placental vascularization with consequent normal development of the fetus. In this review article, the authors discuss about placental ontogeny, focusing on the main aspects of its normal development, and about the recent advances in ultrasonography for the study of the vascular architecture of the placenta through three-dimensional power Doppler ultrasonography.

3DPD placental vascular indices obtained using the automatic sphere mode had a good intra and interobserver reproducibility for pregnancies between 26 and 35 weeks. The FI obtained the highest reproducibility scores.

The authors describe a new methodology for volumetric calculation through three-dimensional ultrasonography called eXtended Imaging VOCAL (XI VOCAL), which is part of the software Three-dimensional eXtended Imaging (3DXI). This software virtualizes real organs, by analyzing the volume through a diagram of slice sections (Multi-slice view) that simultaneously shows a sequence of images in parallel planes, and establishes the volume of the organ. Because of the importance of accurate volumetric measurements in obstetric ultrasonography, a new method allowing this measurement should be regarded as of great interest.

Our objective is to report a case of uteroperitoneal fistula caused by uterine trauma during curettage, diagnosed by color Doppler hysterosonogrphy. The importance of our report lies on HS as a simple, safe and low cost method, which can be used for the diagnosis of fistulous processes involving the uterus.

Placental FI assessed by 3DPD increases progressively and significantly between 26 and 35 weeks. Placental location has no influence on the three vascular indices studied. The FI reference values obtained in this study can be used as a parameter for future investigations on placental vascularization using 3DPD.

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Three-dimensional ultrasound is an advancement in fetal heart evaluation; however two-dimensional ultrasound remains the best screening method in diagnosing cardiac malformations, due to the good quality of its images and the lesser time needed to perform the exam.

Os tumores cardíacos constituem condição rara, com incidência entre 0,17 e 28/10.000 na população geral. Os rabdomiomas são os tumores mais frequentes no período pré-natal. Este trabalho tem como objetivo relatar o caso de um feto com 31 semanas de gestação que apresentava tumoração intracardíaca de grandes dimensões, com graves repercussões clínicas.