Obstetrics & Gynecology Track the topics, authors and articles important to you
HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
QUICK SEARCH:   [advanced]


     

Obstetrics & Gynecology 1999;93:377-381
© 1999 by The American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists
This Article
Right arrow Full Text
Right arrow Full Text (PDF)
Right arrow Alert me when this article is cited
Right arrow Alert me if a correction is posted
Services
Right arrow Similar articles in this journal
Right arrow Similar articles in PubMed
Right arrow Alert me to new issues of the journal
Right arrow Download to citation manager
Citing Articles
Right arrow Citing Articles via Google Scholar
Google Scholar
Right arrow Articles by SEPULVEDA, W.
Right arrow Articles by SCHNAPP, C.
Right arrow Search for Related Content
PubMed
Right arrow PubMed Citation
Right arrow Articles by SEPULVEDA, W.
Right arrow Articles by SCHNAPP, C.

ORIGINAL RESEARCH

Pseudocyst of the Umbilical Cord: Prenatal Sonographic Appearance and Clinical Significance

WALDO SEPULVEDA, MD, JORGE GUTIERREZ, MD, JORGE SANCHEZ, MD, CECILIA BE, MSc and CARLOS SCHNAPP, MD

From the Fetal Medicine Center, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, and the Cytogenetics Laboratory, Clinica Las Condes, Santiago; and the Ultrasound Unit, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, San Jose Hospital, Santiago, Chile.

Address reprint requests to: Waldo Sepulveda, MD, Fetal Medicine Center, Clinica Las Condes, Casilla 268, Santiago 34, Chile, E-mail: waldosep{at}chilesat.net

Objective: To assess the clinical significance of umbilical cord pseudocysts detected prenatally by sonography.

Methods: The prenatal sonographic findings, karyotype, and perinatal outcome in 13 fetuses with umbilical cord pseudocysts were reviewed retrospectively.

Results: Umbilical cord pseudocysts were diagnosed at a median gestation of 27 weeks (range 15–37). Pseudocysts were single in eight cases with cyst diameters ranging from 20 to 50 mm, and double in one case. In the remaining four cases, multiple small cystic masses measuring less than 8 mm were identified. Additional sonographic findings were noted in 11 cases; ten of these fetuses had prenatal karyotyping, which showed trisomy 18 in five cases, trisomy 13 in one case, and a 46,XX, inv ins(18;21) complement in one case. Among the seven chromosomally abnormal fetuses, umbilical cord pseudocysts were multiple in four fetuses and single in three. All chromosomally abnormal fetuses and two euploid fetuses with associated structural defects died in utero or in the neonatal period. There were no perinatal complications in either of the fetuses with isolated pseudocysts.

Conclusion: The prenatal sonographic appearance of umbilical cord pseudocysts varied widely. These umbilical cord cystic masses were associated strongly with chromosomal disorders and structural defects, regardless of their sonographic appearance in utero.






HOME HELP FEEDBACK SUBSCRIPTIONS ARCHIVE SEARCH TABLE OF CONTENTS
Copyright © 1999 by the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists.