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Congress: ECR25
Poster Number: C-12818
Type: Poster: EPOS Radiographer (educational)
Authorblock: S. Drees, R. Reeve; Fareham/UK
Disclosures:
Samira Drees: Nothing to disclose
Ruth Reeve: Nothing to disclose
Keywords: Obstetrics (Pregnancy / birth / postnatal period), Ultrasound, Ultrasound-Colour Doppler, Audit and standards, Education, Outcomes analysis, Obstetrics
Learning objectives To review the: Ultrasound appearances of single artery umbilical cord Associations of single artery umbilical cord on fetal growth
Read more Background In pregnancy, the umbilical cord provides the connection between the placenta and the fetus for the transportation of blood.  The cord is typically composed of two arteries carrying deoxygenated blood from the fetus, and a single vein carrying oxygenated blood to the fetus. A variation of the umbilical vessels can occur, where there is only a single vein and single artery. This can occur due to primary agenesis or atrophy of one of the arteries.A two-vessel cord is a normal...
Read more Findings and procedure details Ultrasound is the recommended and preferred modality for fetal assessment. The umbilical artery vessels are assessed at the anomaly scan as per departmental protocols. Assessment is completed by using colour Doppler in the transverse plane of the fetal pelvis to visualise the two umbilical arteries branching laterally to the urinary bladder. The arteries can also be assessed by visualising a transverse section of the umbilical cord. Figure 1 demonstrates a typical three vessel cord visualised in a transverse section of...
Read more Conclusion Identification and subsequent monitoring of single artery umbilical cords has shown to not have a relation to fetal birth weight or adverse pregnancy outcomes.Our findings suggest that a single artery umbilical is not a good predictor for any birthweight. Removing the assessment for 2VC at the anomaly scan can reduce the anxiety inflicted on patients from receiving 2VC diagnosis and subsequent growth scans, as well as reducing the pressure on the service by reducing the number of growth scans required....
Read more References Avery’s diseases of the newborn edited by H. William Taeusch, Roberta A. Ballard, Christine A. Gleason (2005). Philadelphia, Pa: W.B. Saunders.GOV.UK (no date) 20-week screening scan, GOV.UK. Available at: https://www.gov.uk/government/publications/fetal-anomaly-screening-programme-handbook/20-week-screening-scan (Accessed: 16 February 2025).Heil, J. and Bordoni, B. (2023) Embryology, Umbilical Cord. Tampa, Florida: StatPearls .https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK557490/Morris, R.K. et al. (2024) ‘Investigation and care of a small‐for‐gestational‐age fetus and a growth restricted fetus (Green‐Top Guideline No. 31)’, BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, 131(9). doi:10.1111/1471-0528.17814.Perinatal Institute. Fetal Growth, Perinatal...
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