Split hand and foot malformation: ultrasound detection in the first trimester

Sonographic Prenatal Diagnosis of Ectrodactyly: A Case Study

Ectrodactyly, also known as split hand/split foot malformation, is a rare congenital disease defined as the absence or underdevelopment of the central digits with a median cleft of the hand or foot. It can be an isolated sonographic finding or associated with a syndrome. This case study describes isolated left-handed ectrodactyly diagnosed sonographically at 20 weeks gestation, during a routine anatomy sonogram. The patient had no family history of this condition, which demonstrates the importance of sonography for early diagnosis, counseling, and genetic testing options.

Prenatal Diagnosis of Ectrodactyly in the First Trimester by Three-Dimensional Ultrasonography

Introduction Ectrodactyly, also known as split hand/foot malformation, is a rare developmental abnormality of the limbs that consists of absent central digits, a deep median cleft, and fusion of the remaining lateral digits, ultimately producing clawlike extremities. This case represents one of the earliest reported diagnoses of this anomaly to utilize three-dimensional (3D) ultrasonography. Case A nulliparous woman presented at 13 weeks of gestation for first-trimester aneuploidy screening. On two-dimensional (2D) imaging, she was noted to have a fetus with a shortened right upper limb and a malformed right hand with no clearly visualized digits. The anomaly was then further evaluated with both transabdominal and transvaginal 2D and 3D ultrasonography with postprocessing visualization, revealing absent central digits. Neither the patient nor her husband reported any personal or family history of skeletal or other structural malformations. Discussion Fetal limb abnormalities are being encountered at increasingly earlier gestational ages due to improvements in image quality and expanded use of ultrasound in the first trimester. Early identification of fetal limb malformations without a definitive diagnosis or a clear pattern of inheritance can present a challenging clinical scenario. Patients may opt for earlier termination of pregnancy rather than wait for additional information to guide decision-making.

Prenatally diagnosed fetal split-hand/foot malformations often accompany a spectrum of anomalies

The purpose of this series was to identify cases that appeared on sonography to be split-hand/foot malformations (SHFMs) in fetuses and correlate the sonographic findings, including 2-dimensional (2D) and 3-dimensional (3D) sonography, to outcomes. A retrospective review was conducted of sonographic studies from 2002 to 2012 at 2 fetal care centers. Data were collected with respect to the morphologic characteristics of split-hand/foot abnormalities, the utility of 3D sonography, associated anatomic abnormalities, family histories, gestational ages at diagnosis, fetal outcomes, karyotype, and autopsy results. Ten cases were identified with gestational ages ranging from 15 to 29 weeks. Three-dimensional sonography was helpful in defining anatomy in 7 of 9 cases in which it was performed. Bilateral SHFMs were found in 7 cases (3 cases involving both hands and feet, 2 cases isolated to hands, and 2 cases isolated to feet), whereas 3 cases showed unilateral split-hand malformations. Associated anatomic anomalies were present in 6 cases, and 4 of these had recognized syndromes, including 2 with abnormal karyotypes, specifically, del(22q11) and del(7q31). Two cases occurred in the context of a positive family history of SHFM. Three cases were delivered at term, and 7 cases were electively terminated. In conclusion, SHFMs often occur with a broad range of chromosomal abnormalities, single-gene disorders, and other congenital anomalies. Some apparent SHFMs turn out to be other limb anomalies, such as complex syndactyly. Prenatal screening using 2D sonography can identify SHFMs, and 3D sonography often further clarifies them.