Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol 2020 Sep 16. Epub 2020 Sep 16.
Perinatology Research Branch, Division of Obstetrics and Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Division of Intramural Research, Eunice Kennedy Shriver National Institute of Child Health and Human Development, National Institutes of Health, U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (NICHD/NIH/DHHS), Bethesda, Maryland, and Detroit, Michigan, USA.
Objectives: 1) To determine whether decreased fetal growth velocity precedes antepartum fetal death, and 2) Evaluate if fetal growth velocity predicts better antepartum fetal death compared to a single, last available, ultrasound examination prior to diagnosis.
Methods: We conducted a retrospective, longitudinal study of 4,285 singleton pregnancies in African-American women who underwent at least two fetal ultrasound examinations between 14 and 32 weeks of gestation and delivered a live born neonate (controls; n=4,262) or experienced antepartum fetal death (cases; n=23). Fetal death was defined as the death of a fetus ≥ 20 weeks of gestation and confirmed by ultrasound examination. Read More