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Cordocentesis for diagnostic indications

Two years' experience

From the Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Iowa College of Medicine, Iowa City, Iowa.

Cordocentesis was performed 96 times over a two-year interval, for a variety of diagnostic indications, in 55 completed pregnancies of 16–40 weeks' duration. There were four unsuccessful procedures, two associated with severe hydramnios and posterior placentas in which the available needles were too short. Sixty-three percent of procedures were successful on the first try; 95% succeeded within three attempts. Sixty-four percent of the samples were obtained from the placental cord origin, 27% from a free-floating loop, and 9% from the fetal cord origin. There were no maternal or significant fetal complications, and bleeding from the puncture site was not a problem. The present series confirms previous reports suggesting that in the proper hands, cordocentesis for diagnosis is a safe, rapid, and efficient means of obtaining access to the fetal circulation.