The study was conducted by John G. Sled, Ph.D., of The Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, and colleagues. It appears in eBioMedicine. Funding was provided in part by NIH’s Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development.
Researchers tested the new technique with ultrasound scans on women between the 26th and 32nd weeks of pregnancy and diagnosed those with circulatory problems in the maternal or fetal part of the placenta. After the women gave birth, the diagnoses were verified by comparing them to the results of physical examination of the placentas they delivered. Among them, 40 women had placentas without circulation problems, 16 had placentas with fetal circulation problems, and 30 had maternal placenta circulation problems.
The authors say their method provides a way to diagnose circulation problems in the placenta that can harm the fetus and would otherwise go undetected until late in pregnancy.
