Benefits of transvaginal sonographic assessment of early pregnancy

Abstract

Objective: The aim of this study was to investigate the benefits of transvaginal sonographic assessment of early pregnancy. Material and Methods: As a prospective observational study, 103 pregnant women were follovved until delivery or completion of a failed pregnancy. Between 6 and 14 weeks of gestation 250 transvaginal ultrasonographic examinations were performed. During the examination, fetal viability and anatomy was evaluated, yolk sac diameter was measured and fetal biometry was established. Results: Of the 103 pregnancies, 10 cases were diagnosed as missed abortion in vvhich 40% had no complaint, 2 cases miscarried during follow up and one cystic hygroma case was terminated medically. The abortion rate after the determination of fetal cardiac activity was found to be 2.1 %. For the yolk sac diameter, two Standard errors above ör below the confidence limits, the sensitivity and specificity of predicting an abnormal outcome (abortion, anomaly, neonatal exitus) was found to be 75% and 95.5% respectively. Conclusion: Sonographic assessment of early pregnancy is a very valuable tool for identifying fetal viability, early diagnosis of fetal anomalies and predicting pregnancy outcome.