Ultrasound Local Heating Improve Foetal Physiological Development in Maternal Hyperparathyroidism

Abstract

Parathyroid disorder associated with hypercalcemia during pregnancy reduces the normal foetal growth, skeletal mineralization and serum calcium concentration. Hypercalcemia increases the risk of birth loss and foetal postpartum complications which includes intrauterine growth retardation, low birth weight, preterm delivery, neonatal hypocalcaemia, tetany and still-birth. Human and animal study exhibit benefits from local hyperthermia induced by ultrasound exposure. Ten-month-old primiparous New Zealand White (NZW) does were assigned into three different groups; control (C), healthy NZW does and free from ultrasound insonation; hyperparathyroidism (HPT), a positive control group having hypercalcemia conditions established through administering phosphate intravenously for 5 months and free from parathyroid ultrasound insonation; treatment (T), an experimental group experiencing hypercalcemia condition and receiving parathyroid ultrasound insonation during pregnancy as intervention to hyperparathyroidism. In treatment group rabbit were exposed for 30, 60 and 90 minutes of parathyroid ultrasound exposure on 1st, 2nd and 3rd gestational stage accordingly. Following birth, foetal serum calcium (SCa), body weight (BW), crown-to-rump length (CRL), total body length (TBL), bi-parietal diameter (BPD) and femur length (FL) of the foetal were measured. Maternal hypercalcemia during pregnancy produced small to gestational age (SGA) progeny with significant reduction of BW, CRL, TBL, BPD, FL and SCa compared to normal. While the outcome of ultrasound exposure given during middle 2nd gestational stage resulted in significantly increase in progeny mean average BW, CRL, TBL, BPD FL and SCa compared to HPT group. Ultrasound induced local heating demonstrated an improved in the physiological development of progeny in the cases of maternal hypercalcemia condition.