Fetal lung maturity

Objective: To determine whether the acceleration/ejection time ratio of the fetal main pulmonary artery Doppler waveform (PATET) can accurately predict the results of fetal lung maturity testing in amniotic fluid. Methods: We prospectively studied pregnant women attending our ultrasound unit for clinically indicated fetal lung maturity testing. An ultrasound examination that included measurement of the PATET was performed before the results of the amniocentesis were reported. The results of the PATET and the surfactant/albumin ratio were compared, and a receiver operating characteristic curve was used to determine the PATET cutoff with the optimal sensitivity and specificity for predicting surfactant/albumin ratio results. p < 0.05 was considered statistically significant. Results: Forty-three patients were included in this study. The receiver operating characteristic curve demonstrated that a PATET cutoff of 0.3149 provided a specificity of 93% (95% CI 77-98%), a sensitivity of 73% (95% CI 48-89%), a negative predictive value of 87% (95% CI 70-95%), and a positive predictive value of 85% (95% CI 58-96%) for predicting immature surfactant/albumin ratio results. Conclusion: The PATET may provide a noninvasive means of determining fetal lung maturity with acceptable levels of sensitivity, specificity, and predictive values.

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 96%

Predicting Fetal Lung Maturity Using the Fetal Pulmonary Artery Doppler Wave Acceleration/Ejection Time Ratio

Schenone¹,

Samson²,

Jenkins³

et al. 2014

“…The current methods used to test fetal lung maturity are performed in the amniotic fluid obtained through an amniocentesis [4,5]. As this invasive procedure entails risks such as infection and miscarriage, during the last decades some authors have explored the possibilities of assessing fetal lung maturity through ultrasound.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Evaluation of Fetal Lung Maturity by Quantitative Analysis (quantusFLM) in Women with Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

Sánchez

Mateo

et al. 2018

Objectives: The aim of the present study was to evaluate fetal lung maturity using the noninvasive method of quantitative ultrasound analysis of fetal lung texture (quantusFLM) in women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM). Methods: A total of 96 women at 36–38 weeks of gestation were enrolled. They were classified as follows: 33 GDM cases treated with diet, 30 GDM cases treated with diet plus insulin, and 33 normoglycemic women (control group). A quantitative analysis of lung texture was performed. Results: There were significant differences in the lung maturity results among groups (p = 0.004). These differences were established between the insulin-treated group of patients and both the control (p = 0.006) and diet-only (p = 0.003) groups. While none of the women in the control group or in the diet group had a high risk of immaturity, 16.7% of those treated with insulin (5/30) did (p = 0.003). There was no statistically significant correlation between HbA1c and the result of the test. Conclusions: Quantitative ultrasound study of fetal lung texture suggests that a significant percentage of pregnant women with GDM treated with insulin had fetal lung immaturity in the late preterm to early term.

“…The surfactant to albumin ratio [3] is the most common method to assess lung maturity but requires an amniocentesis. In addition, the accuracy of this test is not optimal assuming that the optimal cutoff to predict RDS results in a sensitivity of 89% with a specificity of 83%, respectively [4].…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

Feasibility and Reproducibility of Fetal Lung Texture Analysis by Automatic Quantitative Ultrasound Analysis and Correlation with Gestational Age

Cobo

Bonet‐Carne²,

Martínez-Terrón

et al. 2012

Objective: To evaluate the feasibility and reproducibility of fetal lung texture analysis using a novel automatic quantitative ultrasound analysis and to assess its correlation with gestational age. Methods: Prospective cross-sectional observational study. To evaluate texture features, 957 left and right lung images in a 2D four-cardiac-chamber view plane were previously delineated from fetuses between 20 and 41 weeks of gestation. Quantification of lung texture was performed by the Automatic Quantitative Ultrasound Analysis (AQUA) software to extract image features. A standard learning approach composed of feature transformation and a regression model was used to evaluate the association between texture features and gestational age. Results: The association between weeks of gestation and fetal lung texture quantified by the AQUA software presented a Pearson correlation of 0.97. The association was not influenced by delineation parameters such as region of interest (ROI) localization, ROI size, right/left lung selected or sonographic parameters such as ultrasound equipment or transducer used. Conclusions: Fetal lung texture analysis measured by the AQUA software demonstrated a strong correlation with gestational age. This supports further research to explore the use of this technology to the noninvasive prediction of fetal lung maturity.