Significance of umbilical artery velocimetry in perinatal outcome of growth restricted fetuses

OBJECTIVE(S) : To study pregnancy outcomes in growth restricted fetuses with normal umbilical artery velocimetry, low-end diastolic umbilical flow, and absent or reversed diastolic flow. METHOD(S) : One hundred and thirty-four pregnant women with growth-restricted fetuses were evaluated by umbilical artery velocimetry between 28 and 41 weeks of pregnancy. Outcome of pregnancy was recorded for the normal doppler group (n=90; 69.5%), the low-end diastolic flow group (n=30; 20.5%) and the group with absent / reversed diastolic flow (n=14; 10%). RESULTS : Fetuses with abnormal umbilical flow velocimetry had higher incidence of oligolydramnios and abnormal NST compared to fetuses with normal umbilical flow. The average birth weight, diagnosis to delivery interval, and gestational age at delivery were comparatively lower with higher incidence of admission to neonatal intensive care unit in fetuses with abnormal umbilical doppler velocimetry. There was no perinatal death in the study. CONCLUSION(S) : Growth restricted fetuses with normal umbilical flow velocimetry are at a lower risk than those with abnormal velocimetry in terms of poor apgar score, and neonatal intensive care admission and its duration. The need for positive pressure ventilation at birth was more in babies with absent diastole / reversed diastolic flow of umbilical artery velocimetry. The average birth weight of the neonates with abnormal umbilical artery doppler was lower of compared to that of neonates with normal umbilical artery velocimetry. The poor neurological sequelae were noticed in neonates with absent diastole / reversed diastolic flow after 6 months follow up.