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Martín-Palumbo G, Alcorta MD, de Aguado MP, Antolín E, Bartha JL. Urinary sFlt-1 and PlGF as preeclampsia predictors: sFlt-1/creatinine ratio improves the prediction value. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol 2024; 298:53-60. [PMID: 38728842 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejogrb.2024.05.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 02/09/2024] [Revised: 04/28/2024] [Accepted: 05/04/2024] [Indexed: 05/12/2024]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To evaluate the correlation between maternal serum and urinary soluble Fms-like tyrosine kinase-1 (sFlt-1) and placental growth factor (PlGF) levels and to assess their potential value in preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction. STUDY DESIGN This case-control longitudinal prospective study was performed in 49 singleton pregnant women, divided into two clinical groups, low risk pregnancy (n = 23) and pregnancy complicated by preeclampsia (n = 26). Maternal serum and urinary sFlt-1 and PlGF levels were quantified by electrochemiluminescence. Every patient underwent an ultrasound for fetal biometry. Doppler assessment was done when estimated fetal weight was under the 10th centile. ROC curves were used to evaluate the predictive capability of serum and urinary angiogenic biomarkers and their ratios on preeclampsia. Linear regression was used to compare the values of serum and urinary sFlt-1 and PlGF and their ratios. RESULTS Urine biomarkers were positively associated with their serum values, being the best associated urinary PlGF (R2 = 0.73), which also showed the highest predictive capability of preeclampsia of urine biomarkers (AUC 0.866). The predictive capability of urinary sFlt-1 was much lower (AUC 0.640), but increased when adjusting by serum creatinine, a more precise parameter (AUC 0.863). CONCLUSIONS Urinary PlGF could be a lesser invasive alternative to circulating biomarkers to monitor pregnancies complicated with preeclampsia that need repeated controls of their pregnancy complication. Urinary sFlt-1 values need adjustment by serum creatinine to be reliable.
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Affiliation(s)
- Giovanna Martín-Palumbo
- Division of Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, La Paz University Hospital, Madrid, Spain.
| | | | - Marta Pérez de Aguado
- Division of Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, La Paz University Hospital, Madrid, Spain
| | - Eugenia Antolín
- Division of Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, La Paz University Hospital, Madrid, Spain
| | - José Luis Bartha
- Division of Maternal and Fetal Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, La Paz University Hospital, Madrid, Spain; Obstetrics and Gynecology of the Autonomous University of Madrid, Director of the Maternal and Fetal Research Group, Fundación para la Investigación Biomédica, La Paz University Hospital, Madrid, Spain
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Al Darwish FM, Coolen BF, van Kammen CM, Alles LK, de Vos J, Schiffelers RM, Lely TA, Strijkers GJ, Terstappen F. Assessment of feto-placental oxygenation and perfusion in a rat model of placental insufficiency using T2* mapping and 3D dynamic contrast-enhanced MRI. Placenta 2024; 151:19-25. [PMID: 38657321 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2024.04.008] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/26/2023] [Revised: 04/05/2024] [Accepted: 04/12/2024] [Indexed: 04/26/2024]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Placental insufficiency may lead to preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction. There is no cure for placental insufficiency, emphasizing the need for monitoring fetal and placenta health. Current monitoring methods are limited, underscoring the necessity for imaging techniques to evaluate fetal-placental perfusion and oxygenation. This study aims to use MRI to evaluate placental oxygenation and perfusion in the reduced uterine perfusion pressure (RUPP) model of placental insufficiency. METHODS Pregnant rats were randomized to RUPP (n = 11) or sham surgery (n = 8) on gestational day 14. On gestational day 19, rats imaged using a 7T MRI scanner to assess oxygenation and perfusion using T2* mapping and 3D-DCE MRI sequences, respectively. The effect of the RUPP on the feto-placental units were analyzed from the MRI images. RESULTS RUPP surgery led to reduced oxygenation in the labyrinth (24.7 ± 1.8 ms vs. 28.0 ± 2.1 ms, P = 0.002) and junctional zone (7.0 ± 0.9 ms vs. 8.1 ± 1.1 ms, P = 0.04) of the placenta, as indicated by decreased T2* values. However, here were no significant differences in fetal organ oxygenation or placental perfusion between RUPP and sham animals. DISCUSSION The reduced placental oxygenation without a corresponding decrease in perfusion suggests an adaptive response to placental ischemia. While acute reduction in placental perfusion may cause placental hypoxia, persistence of this condition could indicate chronic placental insufficiency after ischemic reperfusion injury. Thus, placental oxygenation may be a more reliable biomarker for assessing fetal condition than perfusion in hypertensive disorders of pregnancies including preeclampsia and FGR.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fatimah M Al Darwish
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Physics, Amsterdam Cardiovascular Sciences, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, 1105, AZ, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
| | - Bram F Coolen
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Physics, Amsterdam Cardiovascular Sciences, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, 1105, AZ, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
| | - Caren M van Kammen
- Department of Obstetrics, Wilhelmina Children's Hospital, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, 3584, EA, Utrecht, Netherlands; Department of CDL Research, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, 3584, EA, Utrecht, Netherlands.
| | - Lindy K Alles
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Physics, Amsterdam Cardiovascular Sciences, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, 1105, AZ, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
| | - Judith de Vos
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Physics, Amsterdam Cardiovascular Sciences, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, 1105, AZ, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
| | - Raymond M Schiffelers
- Department of CDL Research, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, 3584, EA, Utrecht, Netherlands.
| | - Titia A Lely
- Department of Obstetrics, Wilhelmina Children's Hospital, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, 3584, EA, Utrecht, Netherlands.
| | - Gustav J Strijkers
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Physics, Amsterdam Cardiovascular Sciences, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, 1105, AZ, Amsterdam, Netherlands.
| | - Fieke Terstappen
- Department of Obstetrics, Wilhelmina Children's Hospital, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, 3584, EA, Utrecht, Netherlands.
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Hall M, de Marvao A, Schweitzer R, Cromb D, Colford K, Jandu P, O’Regan DP, Ho A, Price A, Chappell LC, Rutherford MA, Story L, Lamata P, Hutter J. Preeclampsia Associated Differences in the Placenta, Fetal Brain, and Maternal Heart Can Be Demonstrated Antenatally: An Observational Cohort Study Using MRI. Hypertension 2024; 81:836-847. [PMID: 38314606 PMCID: PMC7615760 DOI: 10.1161/hypertensionaha.123.22442] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/20/2023] [Accepted: 01/02/2024] [Indexed: 02/06/2024]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Preeclampsia is a multiorgan disease of pregnancy that has short- and long-term implications for the woman and fetus, whose immediate impact is poorly understood. We present a novel multiorgan approach to magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) investigation of preeclampsia, with the acquisition of maternal cardiac, placental, and fetal brain anatomic and functional imaging. METHODS An observational study was performed recruiting 3 groups of pregnant women: those with preeclampsia, chronic hypertension, or no medical complications. All women underwent a cardiac MRI, and pregnant women underwent a placental-fetal MRI. Cardiac analysis for structural, morphological, and flow data were undertaken; placenta and fetal brain volumetric and T2* (which describes relative tissue oxygenation) data were obtained. All results were corrected for gestational age. A nonpregnant cohort was identified for inclusion in the statistical shape analysis. RESULTS Seventy-eight MRIs were obtained during pregnancy. Cardiac MRI analysis demonstrated higher left ventricular mass in preeclampsia with 3-dimensional modeling revealing additional specific characteristics of eccentricity and outflow track remodeling. Pregnancies affected by preeclampsia demonstrated lower placental and fetal brain T2*. Within the preeclampsia group, 23% placental T2* results were consistent with controls, these were the only cases with normal placental histopathology. Fetal brain T2* results were consistent with normal controls in 31% of cases. CONCLUSIONS We present the first holistic assessment of the immediate implications of preeclampsia on maternal heart, placenta, and fetal brain. As well as having potential clinical implications for the risk stratification and management of women with preeclampsia, this gives an insight into the disease mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Megan Hall
- Department of Women and Children’s Health (M.H., A.d.M., A.H., L.C.C., L.S.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
- Centre for the Developing Brain (M.H., D.C., K.C., A.H., A.P., M.A.R., L.S., J.H.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
| | - Antonio de Marvao
- Department of Women and Children’s Health (M.H., A.d.M., A.H., L.C.C., L.S.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
- School of Cardiovascular Medicine (A.d.M., R.S.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, Imperial College London, United Kingdom (A.d.M., R.S., D.P.O.)
| | - Ronny Schweitzer
- School of Cardiovascular Medicine (A.d.M., R.S.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, Imperial College London, United Kingdom (A.d.M., R.S., D.P.O.)
| | - Daniel Cromb
- Centre for the Developing Brain (M.H., D.C., K.C., A.H., A.P., M.A.R., L.S., J.H.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
| | - Kathleen Colford
- Centre for the Developing Brain (M.H., D.C., K.C., A.H., A.P., M.A.R., L.S., J.H.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
| | - Priya Jandu
- GKT School of Medical Education (P.J.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
| | - Declan P O’Regan
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, Imperial College London, United Kingdom (A.d.M., R.S., D.P.O.)
| | - Alison Ho
- Department of Women and Children’s Health (M.H., A.d.M., A.H., L.C.C., L.S.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
- Centre for the Developing Brain (M.H., D.C., K.C., A.H., A.P., M.A.R., L.S., J.H.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
| | - Anthony Price
- Centre for the Developing Brain (M.H., D.C., K.C., A.H., A.P., M.A.R., L.S., J.H.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
- Centre for Medical Engineering (A.P., P.L.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
| | - Lucy C. Chappell
- Department of Women and Children’s Health (M.H., A.d.M., A.H., L.C.C., L.S.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
| | - Mary A. Rutherford
- Centre for the Developing Brain (M.H., D.C., K.C., A.H., A.P., M.A.R., L.S., J.H.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
| | - Lisa Story
- Department of Women and Children’s Health (M.H., A.d.M., A.H., L.C.C., L.S.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
- Centre for the Developing Brain (M.H., D.C., K.C., A.H., A.P., M.A.R., L.S., J.H.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
| | - Pablo Lamata
- Centre for Medical Engineering (A.P., P.L.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
| | - Jana Hutter
- Centre for the Developing Brain (M.H., D.C., K.C., A.H., A.P., M.A.R., L.S., J.H.), King’s College London, United Kingdom
- Smart Imaging Lab, Radiological Institute, University Hospital Erlangen, Germany (J.H.)
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Lewandowski AJ, Sattwika PD. Holistic MRI Acquisition in Preeclamptic Pregnancies: A New Avenue for Clinical Investigations? Hypertension 2024; 81:848-850. [PMID: 38507512 DOI: 10.1161/hypertensionaha.124.22710] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 03/22/2024]
Affiliation(s)
- Adam James Lewandowski
- Cardiovascular Clinical Research Facility, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, United Kingdom (A.J.L., P.D.S.)
| | - Prenali Dwisthi Sattwika
- Cardiovascular Clinical Research Facility, Division of Cardiovascular Medicine, Radcliffe Department of Medicine, University of Oxford, United Kingdom (A.J.L., P.D.S.)
- Department of Internal Medicine, Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia (P.D.S.)
- Clinical Epidemiology and Biostatistics Unit, Faculty of Medicine, Public Health, and Nursing, Universitas Gadjah Mada, Indonesia (P.D.S.)
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Preston M, Hall M, Shennan A, Story L. The role of placental insufficiency in spontaneous preterm birth: A literature review. Eur J Obstet Gynecol Reprod Biol 2024; 295:136-142. [PMID: 38359634 DOI: 10.1016/j.ejogrb.2024.02.020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/18/2023] [Revised: 02/05/2024] [Accepted: 02/09/2024] [Indexed: 02/17/2024]
Abstract
Preterm Birth (delivery before 37 weeks of gestation) is the leading cause of childhood mortality and is also associated with significant morbidity both in the neonatal period and beyond. The aetiology of spontaneous preterm birth is unclear and likely multifactorial incorporating factors such as infection/inflammation and cervical injury. Placental insufficiency is emerging as an additional contributor to spontaneous preterm delivery; however, the mechanisms by which this occurs are not fully understood. Serum biomarkers and imaging techniques have been investigated as potential predictors of placental insufficiency, however none have yet been found to have a sufficient predictive value. This review examines the evidence for the role of the placenta in preterm birth, preterm prelabour rupture of the membranes and abruption as well as highlighting areas where further research is required.
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Affiliation(s)
- Megan Preston
- Department of Women and Children's Health, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College, London, UK
| | - Megan Hall
- Department of Women and Children's Health, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College, London, UK; Department of Perinatal Imaging, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College, London, UK
| | - Andrew Shennan
- Department of Women and Children's Health, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College, London, UK
| | - Lisa Story
- Department of Women and Children's Health, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College, London, UK; Department of Perinatal Imaging, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College, London, UK.
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O'Brien KA, Gu W, Houck JA, Holzner LMW, Yung HW, Armstrong JL, Sowton AP, Baxter R, Darwin PM, Toledo-Jaldin L, Lazo-Vega L, Moreno-Aramayo AE, Miranda-Garrido V, Shortt JA, Matarazzo CJ, Yasini H, Burton GJ, Moore LG, Simonson TS, Murray AJ, Julian CG. Genomic Selection Signals in Andean Highlanders Reveal Adaptive Placental Metabolic Phenotypes That Are Disrupted in Preeclampsia. Hypertension 2024; 81:319-329. [PMID: 38018457 PMCID: PMC10841680 DOI: 10.1161/hypertensionaha.123.21748] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/28/2023] [Accepted: 10/24/2023] [Indexed: 11/30/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The chronic hypoxia of high-altitude residence poses challenges for tissue oxygen supply and metabolism. Exposure to high altitude during pregnancy increases the incidence of hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and fetal growth restriction and alters placental metabolism. High-altitude ancestry protects against altitude-associated fetal growth restriction, indicating hypoxia tolerance that is genetic in nature. Yet, not all babies are protected and placental pathologies associated with fetal growth restriction occur in some Andean highlanders. METHODS We examined placental metabolic function in 79 Andeans (18-45 years; 39 preeclamptic and 40 normotensive) living in La Paz, Bolivia (3600-4100 m) delivered by unlabored Cesarean section. Using a selection-nominated approach, we examined links between putatively adaptive genetic variation and phenotypes related to oxygen delivery or placental metabolism. RESULTS Mitochondrial oxidative capacity was associated with fetal oxygen delivery in normotensive but not preeclamptic placenta and was also suppressed in term preeclamptic pregnancy. Maternal haplotypes in or within 200 kb of selection-nominated genes were associated with lower placental mitochondrial respiratory capacity (PTPRD [protein tyrosine phosphatase receptor-δ]), lower maternal plasma erythropoietin (CPT2 [carnitine palmitoyl transferase 2], proopiomelanocortin, and DNMT3 [DNA methyltransferase 3]), and lower VEGF (vascular endothelial growth factor) in umbilical venous plasma (TBX5 [T-box transcription factor 5]). A fetal haplotype within 200 kb of CPT2 was associated with increased placental mitochondrial complex II capacity, placental nitrotyrosine, and GLUT4 (glucose transporter type 4) protein expression. CONCLUSIONS Our findings reveal novel associations between putatively adaptive gene regions and phenotypes linked to oxygen delivery and placental metabolic function in highland Andeans, suggesting that such effects may be of genetic origin. Our findings also demonstrate maladaptive metabolic mechanisms in the context of preeclampsia, including dysregulation of placental oxygen consumption.
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Affiliation(s)
- Katie A O'Brien
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom (K.A.O., L.M.W.H., H.W.Y., J.L.A., A.P.S., R.B., P.M.D., G.J.B., A.J.M.)
- Department of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine (K.A.O., W.G., T.S.S.), University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA
- Department of Biomedical Informatics (K.A.O., J.A.H., J.A.S., C.J.M., H.Y., C.G.J.), University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO
| | - Wanjun Gu
- Department of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine (K.A.O., W.G., T.S.S.), University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA
- Herbert Wertheim School of Public Health and Longevity Sciences (W.G.), University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA
| | - Julie A Houck
- Department of Biomedical Informatics (K.A.O., J.A.H., J.A.S., C.J.M., H.Y., C.G.J.), University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Reproductive Sciences (J.A.H., L.G.M.), University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO
| | - Lorenz M W Holzner
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom (K.A.O., L.M.W.H., H.W.Y., J.L.A., A.P.S., R.B., P.M.D., G.J.B., A.J.M.)
| | - Hong Wa Yung
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom (K.A.O., L.M.W.H., H.W.Y., J.L.A., A.P.S., R.B., P.M.D., G.J.B., A.J.M.)
| | - Jenna L Armstrong
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom (K.A.O., L.M.W.H., H.W.Y., J.L.A., A.P.S., R.B., P.M.D., G.J.B., A.J.M.)
| | - Alice P Sowton
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom (K.A.O., L.M.W.H., H.W.Y., J.L.A., A.P.S., R.B., P.M.D., G.J.B., A.J.M.)
| | - Ruby Baxter
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom (K.A.O., L.M.W.H., H.W.Y., J.L.A., A.P.S., R.B., P.M.D., G.J.B., A.J.M.)
| | - Paula M Darwin
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom (K.A.O., L.M.W.H., H.W.Y., J.L.A., A.P.S., R.B., P.M.D., G.J.B., A.J.M.)
| | - Lilian Toledo-Jaldin
- Department of Obstetrics, Hospital Materno-Infantil, La Paz, Bolivia (L.T.-J., L.L.-V., A.E.M.-M., V.M.-G.)
| | - Litzi Lazo-Vega
- Department of Obstetrics, Hospital Materno-Infantil, La Paz, Bolivia (L.T.-J., L.L.-V., A.E.M.-M., V.M.-G.)
| | - Any Elena Moreno-Aramayo
- Department of Obstetrics, Hospital Materno-Infantil, La Paz, Bolivia (L.T.-J., L.L.-V., A.E.M.-M., V.M.-G.)
| | - Valquiria Miranda-Garrido
- Department of Obstetrics, Hospital Materno-Infantil, La Paz, Bolivia (L.T.-J., L.L.-V., A.E.M.-M., V.M.-G.)
| | - Jonathan A Shortt
- Department of Biomedical Informatics (K.A.O., J.A.H., J.A.S., C.J.M., H.Y., C.G.J.), University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO
| | - Christopher J Matarazzo
- Department of Biomedical Informatics (K.A.O., J.A.H., J.A.S., C.J.M., H.Y., C.G.J.), University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO
| | - Hussna Yasini
- Department of Biomedical Informatics (K.A.O., J.A.H., J.A.S., C.J.M., H.Y., C.G.J.), University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO
| | - Graham J Burton
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom (K.A.O., L.M.W.H., H.W.Y., J.L.A., A.P.S., R.B., P.M.D., G.J.B., A.J.M.)
| | - Lorna G Moore
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Division of Reproductive Sciences (J.A.H., L.G.M.), University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO
| | - Tatum S Simonson
- Department of Medicine, Division of Pulmonary, Critical Care, and Sleep Medicine (K.A.O., W.G., T.S.S.), University of California San Diego, La Jolla, CA
| | - Andrew J Murray
- Department of Physiology, Development and Neuroscience, University of Cambridge, Cambridge, United Kingdom (K.A.O., L.M.W.H., H.W.Y., J.L.A., A.P.S., R.B., P.M.D., G.J.B., A.J.M.)
| | - Colleen G Julian
- Department of Biomedical Informatics (K.A.O., J.A.H., J.A.S., C.J.M., H.Y., C.G.J.), University of Colorado School of Medicine, Aurora, CO
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Xie C, Man Q, Wan X, Ding Y, Li M. The clinical value of combining shear wave elastography, VOCAL technique, and T2* MRI of early gestation placenta to predict pre-eclampsia. J Clin Ultrasound 2024; 52:13-19. [PMID: 37883126 DOI: 10.1002/jcu.23575] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2023] [Revised: 09/18/2023] [Accepted: 09/20/2023] [Indexed: 10/27/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVE To investigate the clinical value of combining shear wave elastography (SWE) with the Volumetric Organ Computer-Aided AnaLysis (VOCAL) technique and T2* magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) to predict pre-eclampsia (PE). METHODS From December 2022 to March 2023, we recruited 31 pregnant women diagnosed with PE at our hospital as the observation group and 85 normal pregnant women as the control group. Differences in placental elasticity, vascularization index (VI), flow index (FI), vascularization flow index (VFI), and T2* MRI perfusion fraction (f) were compared between the two groups. Received operating characteristic (ROC) curve analysis was performed to evaluate the diagnostic value of placental elasticity, VI, FI, VFI, f, and their combination for predicting PE. RESULTS Placental elasticity was higher in the observation group than in the control group, while VI, FI, VFI, and f were lower in the observation group (all p < 0.05). The area under the curve (AUC) for placental elasticity, VI, FI, VFI, f, and their combination for predicting PE were 0.85, 0.77, 0.78, 0.84, 0.65, and 0.94, respectively. The sensitivity was 71%, 55%, 94%, 65%, 55%, and 81%. The specificity was 92%, 91%, 60%, 92%, 79%, and 98%. The combined prediction model had a higher AUC than the individual predictors (p < 0.05). CONCLUSION SWE combined with VOCAL technique and T2* MRI has high value for predicting PE and can provide reference information for clinical diagnosis.
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Affiliation(s)
- Chuanbo Xie
- Ultrasound Medicine Department, Zigong Hospital of Woman and Children Healthcare, Zigong, Sichuan, China
| | - Qin Man
- Prenatal Diagnosis Center, Zigong Hospital of Woman and Children Healthcare, Zigong, Sichuan, China
| | - Xiaomei Wan
- Ultrasound Medicine Department, Zigong Hospital of Woman and Children Healthcare, Zigong, Sichuan, China
| | - Yanyun Ding
- Ultrasound Medicine Department, Zigong Hospital of Woman and Children Healthcare, Zigong, Sichuan, China
| | - Min Li
- Imaging Department, Zigong Hospital of Woman and Children Healthcare, Zigong, Sichuan, China
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Story L, Uus A, Hall M, Payette K, Bakalis S, Arichi T, Shennan A, Rutherford M, Hutter J. Functional assessment of brain development in fetuses that subsequently deliver very preterm: An MRI pilot study. Prenat Diagn 2024; 44:49-56. [PMID: 38126921 PMCID: PMC10952951 DOI: 10.1002/pd.6498] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/11/2023] [Revised: 11/14/2023] [Accepted: 12/02/2023] [Indexed: 12/23/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES To evaluate changes occurring in the fetal brain prior to very preterm delivery using MRI T2* relaxometry, an indirect assessment of tissue perfusion. METHOD Fetuses that subsequently delivered spontaneously <32 weeks gestation and a control cohort were identified from pre-existing datasets. Participants had undergone a 3T MRI assessment including T2* relaxometry of the fetal brain using a 2D multi-slice gradient echo single shot echo planar imaging sequence. T2* maps were generated, supratentorial brain tissue was manually segmented and mean T2* values were generated. Groups were compared using quadratic regression. RESULTS Twenty five fetuses that subsequently delivered <32 weeks and 67 that delivered at term were included. Mean gestation at MRI was 24.5 weeks (SD 3.3) and 25.4 weeks (SD 3.1) and gestation at delivery 25.5 weeks (SD 3.4) and 39.7 weeks (SD 1.2) in the preterm and term cohorts respectively. Brain mean T2* values were significantly lower in fetuses that subsequently delivered before 32 weeks gestation (p < 0.001). CONCLUSION Alterations in brain maturation appear to occur prior to preterm delivery. Further work is required to explore these associations, but these findings suggest a potential window for therapeutic neuroprotective agents in fetuses at high risk of preterm delivery in the future.
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Affiliation(s)
- Lisa Story
- Department of Women's and Children's HealthKing's College LondonSt Thomas' Hospital LondonLondonUK
- Centre for the Developing BrainSchool of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonSt Thomas' Hospital LondonLondonUK
- Fetal Medicine UnitSt Thomas' Hospital LondonLondonUK
| | - Alena Uus
- Department of Women's and Children's HealthKing's College LondonSt Thomas' Hospital LondonLondonUK
| | - Megan Hall
- Department of Women's and Children's HealthKing's College LondonSt Thomas' Hospital LondonLondonUK
- Centre for the Developing BrainSchool of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonSt Thomas' Hospital LondonLondonUK
| | - Kelly Payette
- Department of Women's and Children's HealthKing's College LondonSt Thomas' Hospital LondonLondonUK
| | | | - Tomoki Arichi
- Centre for the Developing BrainSchool of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonSt Thomas' Hospital LondonLondonUK
| | - Andrew Shennan
- Department of Women's and Children's HealthKing's College LondonSt Thomas' Hospital LondonLondonUK
| | - Mary Rutherford
- Centre for the Developing BrainSchool of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonSt Thomas' Hospital LondonLondonUK
| | - Jana Hutter
- Centre for the Developing BrainSchool of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonSt Thomas' Hospital LondonLondonUK
- Radiological InstituteUniversity Hospital ErlangenErlangenGermany
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9
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Neves Silva S, Aviles Verdera J, Tomi‐Tricot R, Neji R, Uus A, Grigorescu I, Wilkinson T, Ozenne V, Lewin A, Story L, De Vita E, Rutherford M, Pushparajah K, Hajnal J, Hutter J. Real-time fetal brain tracking for functional fetal MRI. Magn Reson Med 2023; 90:2306-2320. [PMID: 37465882 PMCID: PMC10952752 DOI: 10.1002/mrm.29803] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/28/2023] [Revised: 07/03/2023] [Accepted: 07/03/2023] [Indexed: 07/20/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE To improve motion robustness of functional fetal MRI scans by developing an intrinsic real-time motion correction method. MRI provides an ideal tool to characterize fetal brain development and growth. It is, however, a relatively slow imaging technique and therefore extremely susceptible to subject motion, particularly in functional MRI experiments acquiring multiple Echo-Planar-Imaging-based repetitions, for example, diffusion MRI or blood-oxygen-level-dependency MRI. METHODS A 3D UNet was trained on 125 fetal datasets to track the fetal brain position in each repetition of the scan in real time. This tracking, inserted into a Gadgetron pipeline on a clinical scanner, allows updating the position of the field of view in a modified echo-planar imaging sequence. The method was evaluated in real-time in controlled-motion phantom experiments and ten fetal MR studies (17 + 4-34 + 3 gestational weeks) at 3T. The localization network was additionally tested retrospectively on 29 low-field (0.55T) datasets. RESULTS Our method achieved real-time fetal head tracking and prospective correction of the acquisition geometry. Localization performance achieved Dice scores of 84.4% and 82.3%, respectively for both the unseen 1.5T/3T and 0.55T fetal data, with values higher for cephalic fetuses and increasing with gestational age. CONCLUSIONS Our technique was able to follow the fetal brain even for fetuses under 18 weeks GA in real-time at 3T and was successfully applied "offline" to new cohorts on 0.55T. Next, it will be deployed to other modalities such as fetal diffusion MRI and to cohorts of pregnant participants diagnosed with pregnancy complications, for example, pre-eclampsia and congenital heart disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sara Neves Silva
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Jordina Aviles Verdera
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Raphael Tomi‐Tricot
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- MR Research CollaborationsSiemens Healthcare LimitedCamberleyUK
| | - Radhouene Neji
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- MR Research CollaborationsSiemens Healthcare LimitedCamberleyUK
| | - Alena Uus
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Irina Grigorescu
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Thomas Wilkinson
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Valery Ozenne
- CNRS, CRMSB, UMR 5536, IHU LirycUniversité de BordeauxBordeauxFrance
| | - Alexander Lewin
- Institute of Neuroscience and Medicine 11, INM‐11Forschungszentrum JülichJülichGermany
- RWTHAachen UniversityAachenGermany
| | - Lisa Story
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- Department of Women & Children's HealthKing's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Enrico De Vita
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- MRI Physics GroupGreat Ormond Street HospitalLondonUK
| | - Mary Rutherford
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Kuberan Pushparajah
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Jo Hajnal
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
| | - Jana Hutter
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging SciencesKing's College LondonLondonUK
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10
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Slator PJ, Cromb D, Jackson LH, Ho A, Counsell SJ, Story L, Chappell LC, Rutherford M, Hajnal JV, Hutter J, Alexander DC. Non-invasive mapping of human placenta microenvironments throughout pregnancy with diffusion-relaxation MRI. Placenta 2023; 144:29-37. [PMID: 37952367 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2023.11.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/10/2023] [Revised: 10/13/2023] [Accepted: 11/01/2023] [Indexed: 11/14/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION In-vivo measurements of placental structure and function have the potential to improve prediction, diagnosis, and treatment planning for a wide range of pregnancy complications, such as fetal growth restriction and pre-eclampsia, and hence inform clinical decision making, ultimately improving patient outcomes. MRI is emerging as a technique with increased sensitivity to placental structure and function compared to the current clinical standard, ultrasound. METHODS We demonstrate and evaluate a combined diffusion-relaxation MRI acquisition and analysis pipeline on a sizable cohort of 78 normal pregnancies with gestational ages ranging from 15 + 5 to 38 + 4 weeks. Our acquisition comprises a combined T2*-diffusion MRI acquisition sequence - which is simultaneously sensitive to oxygenation, microstructure and microcirculation. We analyse our scans with a data-driven unsupervised machine learning technique, InSpect, that parsimoniously identifies distinct components in the data. RESULTS We identify and map seven potential placental microenvironments and reveal detailed insights into multiple microstructural and microcirculatory features of the placenta, and assess their trends across gestation. DISCUSSION By demonstrating direct observation of micro-scale placental structure and function, and revealing clear trends across pregnancy, our work contributes towards the development of robust imaging biomarkers for pregnancy complications and the ultimate goal of a normative model of placental development.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paddy J Slator
- Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre, School of Psychology, Maindy Road, Cardiff, CF24 4HQ, UK; School of Computer Science and Informatics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK; Centre for Medical Image Computing and Department of Computer Science, University College London, London, UK.
| | - Daniel Cromb
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Laurence H Jackson
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK; Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Alison Ho
- Department of Women and Children's Health, School of Life Course Sciences, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Serena J Counsell
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Lisa Story
- Department of Women and Children's Health, School of Life Course Sciences, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Lucy C Chappell
- Department of Women and Children's Health, School of Life Course Sciences, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Mary Rutherford
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Joseph V Hajnal
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK; Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Jana Hutter
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK; Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Daniel C Alexander
- Centre for Medical Image Computing and Department of Computer Science, University College London, London, UK
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11
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Grimaldi B, Kohan-Ghadr HR, Halari CD, Nandi P, Kingdom JC, Drewlo S. Rosiglitazone-Mediated Activation of PPARγ Restores HO1 Expression in the Human Preeclamptic Placenta. Hypertension 2023; 80:2386-2396. [PMID: 37702083 PMCID: PMC10581437 DOI: 10.1161/hypertensionaha.123.21645] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 06/12/2023] [Accepted: 08/14/2023] [Indexed: 09/14/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Preeclampsia is a hypertensive disorder of pregnancy characterized by chronic placental ischemia and suppression of proangiogenic proteins, causing oxidative stress, hypertension, and maternal systemic organ damage. The transcription factor, PPARγ (peroxisome proliferator-activated receptor-γ) promotes healthy trophoblast differentiation but is dysregulated in the preeclampsia placenta. Our study identifies the beneficial impact of Rosiglitazone-mediated PPARγ-activation in the stressed preeclampsia placenta. METHODS We used first trimester placentas, preeclamptic and preterm control placentas, and human trophoblast cell lines to study PPARγ activation. RESULTS Induction of PPARγ activates cell growth and antioxidative stress pathways, including the gene, heme oxygenase 1 (Hmox1). Protein expression of both PPARγ and HO1 (heme oxygenase 1) are reduced in preeclamptic placentas, but Rosiglitazone restores HO1 signaling in a PPARγ-dependent manner. CONCLUSIONS Restoring disrupted pathways by PPARγ in preeclampsia offers a potential therapeutic pathway to reverse placental damage, extending pregnancy duration, and reduce maternal sequelae. Future research should aim to understand the full scope of impaired PPARγ signaling in the human placenta and focus on compounds for safe use during pregnancy to prevent severe perinatal morbidity and mortality.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brooke Grimaldi
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI (B.G., H.-R.K.-G.)
- Department of Epigenetics, Van Andel Institute, Grand Rapids, MI (B.G.)
| | - Hamid-Reza Kohan-Ghadr
- Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, College of Human Medicine, Michigan State University, Grand Rapids, MI (B.G., H.-R.K.-G.)
| | - Chidambra D. Halari
- Biological Sciences Platform, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, Canada (C.D.H., P.N., S.D.)
| | - Pinki Nandi
- Biological Sciences Platform, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, Canada (C.D.H., P.N., S.D.)
| | - John C. Kingdom
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Canada (J.C.K., S.D.)
- Department of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, University of Toronto, Canada (J.C.K.)
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada (J.C.K., S.D.)
| | - Sascha Drewlo
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Temerty Faculty of Medicine, University of Toronto, Canada (J.C.K., S.D.)
- Biological Sciences Platform, Sunnybrook Health Sciences Centre, Sunnybrook Research Institute, Toronto, Canada (C.D.H., P.N., S.D.)
- Department of Laboratory Medicine and Pathobiology, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada (J.C.K., S.D.)
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12
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Herrera CL, Kim MJ, Do QN, Owen DM, Fei B, Twickler DM, Spong CY. The human placenta project: Funded studies, imaging technologies, and future directions. Placenta 2023; 142:27-35. [PMID: 37634371 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2023.08.067] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/13/2023] [Revised: 08/16/2023] [Accepted: 08/19/2023] [Indexed: 08/29/2023]
Abstract
The placenta plays a critical role in fetal development. It serves as a multi-functional organ that protects and nurtures the fetus during pregnancy. However, despite its importance, the intricacies of placental structure and function in normal and diseased states have remained largely unexplored. Thus, in 2014, the National Institute of Child Health and Human Development launched the Human Placenta Project (HPP). As of May 2023, the HPP has awarded over $101 million in research funds, resulting in 41 funded studies and 459 publications. We conducted a comprehensive review of these studies and publications to identify areas of funded research, advances in those areas, limitations of current research, and continued areas of need. This paper will specifically review the funded studies by the HPP, followed by an in-depth discussion on advances and gaps within placental-focused imaging. We highlight the progress within magnetic reasonance imaging and ultrasound, including development of tools for the assessment of placental function and structure.
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Affiliation(s)
- Christina L Herrera
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, and Parkland Health Dallas, Texas, USA; Green Center for Reproductive Biology Sciences, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA.
| | - Meredith J Kim
- University of Texas Southwestern Medical School, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Quyen N Do
- Department of Radiology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - David M Owen
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, and Parkland Health Dallas, Texas, USA; Green Center for Reproductive Biology Sciences, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Baowei Fei
- Department of Radiology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA; Advanced Imaging Research Center, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA; Department of Bioengineering, University of Texas at Dallas, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Diane M Twickler
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, and Parkland Health Dallas, Texas, USA; Department of Radiology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, Dallas, TX, USA
| | - Catherine Y Spong
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, UT Southwestern Medical Center, and Parkland Health Dallas, Texas, USA
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13
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Aviles Verdera J, Story L, Hall M, Finck T, Egloff A, Seed PT, Malik SJ, Rutherford MA, Hajnal JV, Tomi-Tricot R, Hutter J. Reliability and Feasibility of Low-Field-Strength Fetal MRI at 0.55 T during Pregnancy. Radiology 2023; 309:e223050. [PMID: 37847139 PMCID: PMC10623193 DOI: 10.1148/radiol.223050] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/30/2022] [Revised: 08/20/2023] [Accepted: 09/06/2023] [Indexed: 10/18/2023]
Abstract
Background The benefits of using low-field-strength fetal MRI to evaluate antenatal development include reduced image artifacts, increased comfort, larger bore size, and potentially reduced costs, but studies about fetal low-field-strength MRI are lacking. Purpose To evaluate the reliability and feasibility of low-field-strength fetal MRI to assess anatomic and functional measures in pregnant participants using a commercially available 0.55-T MRI scanner and a comprehensive 20-minute protocol. Materials and Methods This prospective study was performed at a large teaching hospital (St Thomas' Hospital; London, England) from May to November 2022 in healthy pregnant participants and participants with pregnancy-related abnormalities using a commercially available 0.55-T MRI scanner. A 20-minute protocol was acquired including anatomic T2-weighted fast-spin-echo, quantitative T2*, and diffusion sequences. Key measures like biparietal diameter, transcerebellar diameter, lung volume, and cervical length were evaluated by two radiologists and an MRI-experienced obstetrician. Functional organ-specific mean values were given. Comparison was performed with existing published values and higher-field MRI using linear regression, interobserver correlation, and Bland-Altman plots. Results A total of 79 fetal MRI examinations were performed (mean gestational age, 29.4 weeks ± 5.5 [SD] [age range, 17.6-39.3 weeks]; maternal age, 34.4 years ± 5.3 [age range, 18.4-45.5 years]) in 47 healthy pregnant participants (control participants) and in 32 participants with pregnancy-related abnormalities. The key anatomic two-dimensional measures for the 47 healthy participants agreed with large cross-sectional 1.5-T and 3-T control studies. The interobserver correlations for the biparietal diameter in the first 40 consecutive scans were 0.96 (95% CI: 0.7, 0.99; P = .002) for abnormalities and 0.93 (95% CI: 0.86, 0.97; P < .001) for control participants. Functional features, including placental and brain T2* and placental apparent diffusion coefficient values, strongly correlated with gestational age (mean placental T2* in the control participants: 5.2 msec of decay per week; R2 = 0.66; mean T2* at 30 weeks, 176.6 msec; P < .001). Conclusion The 20-minute low-field-strength fetal MRI examination protocol was capable of producing reliable structural and functional measures of the fetus and placenta in pregnancy. Clinical trial registration no. REC 21/LO/0742 © RSNA, 2023 Supplemental material is available for this article. See also the editorial by Gowland in this issue.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jordina Aviles Verdera
- From the Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical
Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, 1st Floor
South Wing, St Thomas’ Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road SE1 7EH London,
United Kingdom (J.A.V., L.S., M.H., P.T.S., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H, J.H.); Centre
for Medical Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering
and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK (J.A.V., L.S.,
A.E., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H., J.H.); Women's Health, GSTT, London, UK
(L.S., M.H., T.F., P.T.S.); Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany (T.F.);
MR Research Collaborations, Siemens Healthcare Limited, Camberley, UK (R.T.T.);
and Radiological Institute, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany
(J.H.)
| | - Lisa Story
- From the Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical
Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, 1st Floor
South Wing, St Thomas’ Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road SE1 7EH London,
United Kingdom (J.A.V., L.S., M.H., P.T.S., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H, J.H.); Centre
for Medical Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering
and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK (J.A.V., L.S.,
A.E., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H., J.H.); Women's Health, GSTT, London, UK
(L.S., M.H., T.F., P.T.S.); Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany (T.F.);
MR Research Collaborations, Siemens Healthcare Limited, Camberley, UK (R.T.T.);
and Radiological Institute, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany
(J.H.)
| | - Megan Hall
- From the Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical
Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, 1st Floor
South Wing, St Thomas’ Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road SE1 7EH London,
United Kingdom (J.A.V., L.S., M.H., P.T.S., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H, J.H.); Centre
for Medical Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering
and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK (J.A.V., L.S.,
A.E., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H., J.H.); Women's Health, GSTT, London, UK
(L.S., M.H., T.F., P.T.S.); Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany (T.F.);
MR Research Collaborations, Siemens Healthcare Limited, Camberley, UK (R.T.T.);
and Radiological Institute, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany
(J.H.)
| | - Tom Finck
- From the Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical
Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, 1st Floor
South Wing, St Thomas’ Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road SE1 7EH London,
United Kingdom (J.A.V., L.S., M.H., P.T.S., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H, J.H.); Centre
for Medical Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering
and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK (J.A.V., L.S.,
A.E., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H., J.H.); Women's Health, GSTT, London, UK
(L.S., M.H., T.F., P.T.S.); Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany (T.F.);
MR Research Collaborations, Siemens Healthcare Limited, Camberley, UK (R.T.T.);
and Radiological Institute, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany
(J.H.)
| | - Alexia Egloff
- From the Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical
Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, 1st Floor
South Wing, St Thomas’ Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road SE1 7EH London,
United Kingdom (J.A.V., L.S., M.H., P.T.S., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H, J.H.); Centre
for Medical Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering
and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK (J.A.V., L.S.,
A.E., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H., J.H.); Women's Health, GSTT, London, UK
(L.S., M.H., T.F., P.T.S.); Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany (T.F.);
MR Research Collaborations, Siemens Healthcare Limited, Camberley, UK (R.T.T.);
and Radiological Institute, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany
(J.H.)
| | - Paul T. Seed
- From the Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical
Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, 1st Floor
South Wing, St Thomas’ Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road SE1 7EH London,
United Kingdom (J.A.V., L.S., M.H., P.T.S., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H, J.H.); Centre
for Medical Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering
and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK (J.A.V., L.S.,
A.E., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H., J.H.); Women's Health, GSTT, London, UK
(L.S., M.H., T.F., P.T.S.); Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany (T.F.);
MR Research Collaborations, Siemens Healthcare Limited, Camberley, UK (R.T.T.);
and Radiological Institute, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany
(J.H.)
| | - Shaihan J. Malik
- From the Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical
Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, 1st Floor
South Wing, St Thomas’ Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road SE1 7EH London,
United Kingdom (J.A.V., L.S., M.H., P.T.S., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H, J.H.); Centre
for Medical Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering
and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK (J.A.V., L.S.,
A.E., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H., J.H.); Women's Health, GSTT, London, UK
(L.S., M.H., T.F., P.T.S.); Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany (T.F.);
MR Research Collaborations, Siemens Healthcare Limited, Camberley, UK (R.T.T.);
and Radiological Institute, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany
(J.H.)
| | - Mary A. Rutherford
- From the Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical
Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, 1st Floor
South Wing, St Thomas’ Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road SE1 7EH London,
United Kingdom (J.A.V., L.S., M.H., P.T.S., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H, J.H.); Centre
for Medical Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering
and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK (J.A.V., L.S.,
A.E., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H., J.H.); Women's Health, GSTT, London, UK
(L.S., M.H., T.F., P.T.S.); Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany (T.F.);
MR Research Collaborations, Siemens Healthcare Limited, Camberley, UK (R.T.T.);
and Radiological Institute, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany
(J.H.)
| | - Joseph V. Hajnal
- From the Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical
Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, 1st Floor
South Wing, St Thomas’ Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road SE1 7EH London,
United Kingdom (J.A.V., L.S., M.H., P.T.S., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H, J.H.); Centre
for Medical Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering
and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK (J.A.V., L.S.,
A.E., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H., J.H.); Women's Health, GSTT, London, UK
(L.S., M.H., T.F., P.T.S.); Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany (T.F.);
MR Research Collaborations, Siemens Healthcare Limited, Camberley, UK (R.T.T.);
and Radiological Institute, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany
(J.H.)
| | - Raphaël Tomi-Tricot
- From the Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical
Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, 1st Floor
South Wing, St Thomas’ Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road SE1 7EH London,
United Kingdom (J.A.V., L.S., M.H., P.T.S., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H, J.H.); Centre
for Medical Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering
and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK (J.A.V., L.S.,
A.E., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H., J.H.); Women's Health, GSTT, London, UK
(L.S., M.H., T.F., P.T.S.); Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany (T.F.);
MR Research Collaborations, Siemens Healthcare Limited, Camberley, UK (R.T.T.);
and Radiological Institute, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany
(J.H.)
| | - Jana Hutter
- From the Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical
Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, 1st Floor
South Wing, St Thomas’ Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road SE1 7EH London,
United Kingdom (J.A.V., L.S., M.H., P.T.S., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H, J.H.); Centre
for Medical Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering
and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, UK (J.A.V., L.S.,
A.E., S.J.M., M.A.R., J.V.H., J.H.); Women's Health, GSTT, London, UK
(L.S., M.H., T.F., P.T.S.); Technical University Munich, Munich, Germany (T.F.);
MR Research Collaborations, Siemens Healthcare Limited, Camberley, UK (R.T.T.);
and Radiological Institute, University Hospital Erlangen, Erlangen, Germany
(J.H.)
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14
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Lee B, Janzen C, Aliabadi AR, Lei MYY, Wu H, Liu D, Vangala SS, Devaskar SU, Sung K. Early pregnancy imaging predicts ischemic placental disease. Placenta 2023; 140:90-99. [PMID: 37549442 PMCID: PMC11090111 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2023.07.297] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2023] [Revised: 07/13/2023] [Accepted: 07/29/2023] [Indexed: 08/09/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION To characterize early-gestation changes in placental structure, perfusion, and oxygenation in the context of ischemic placental disease (IPD) as a composite outcome and in individual sub-groups. METHODS In a single-center prospective cohort study, 199 women were recruited from antenatal clinics between February 2017 and February 2019. Maternal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) studies of the placenta were temporally conducted at two timepoints: 14-16 weeks gestational age (GA) and 19-24 weeks GA. The pregnancy was monitored via four additional study visits, including at delivery. Placental volume, perfusion, and oxygenation were assessed at both MRI timepoints. The primary outcome was defined as pregnancy complicated by IPD, with group assignment confirmed after delivery. RESULTS In early gestation, mothers with IPD who subsequently developed fetal growth restriction (FGR) and/or delivered small-for gestational age (SGA) infants showed significantly decreased MRI indices of placental volume, perfusion, and oxygenation compared to controls. The prediction of FGR or SGA by multiple logistic regression using placental volume, perfusion, and oxygenation revealed receiver operator characteristic curves with areas under the curve of 0.81 (Positive predictive value (PPV) = 0.84, negative predictive value (NPV) = 0.75) at 14-16 weeks GA and 0.66 (PPV = 0.78, NPV = 0.60) at 19-24 weeks GA. DISCUSSION MRI indices showing decreased placental volume, perfusion and oxygenation in early pregnancy were associated with subsequent onset of IPD, with the greatest deviation evident in subjects with FGR and/or SGA. These early-gestation MRI changes may be predictive of the subsequent development of FGR and/or SGA.
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Affiliation(s)
- Brian Lee
- Department of Pediatrics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, 10833 Le Conte Ave, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA.
| | - Carla Janzen
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Ave, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA.
| | - Arya R Aliabadi
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Ave, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA.
| | - Margarida Y Y Lei
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California Los Angeles, 10833 Le Conte Ave, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA.
| | - Holden Wu
- Department of Radiological Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, 300 Medical Plaza, B119, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
| | - Dapeng Liu
- Department of Radiological Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, 300 Medical Plaza, B119, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
| | - Sitaram S Vangala
- Department of Medicine Statistical Core, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, 1100 Glendon Ave Suite 1820, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA.
| | - Sherin U Devaskar
- Department of Pediatrics, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, 10833 Le Conte Ave, Los Angeles, CA, 90095, USA.
| | - Kyunghyun Sung
- Department of Radiological Sciences, David Geffen School of Medicine, University of California, 300 Medical Plaza, B119, Los Angeles, CA 90095, USA.
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15
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Al Darwish FM, Meijerink L, Coolen BF, Strijkers GJ, Bekker M, Lely T, Terstappen F. From Molecules to Imaging: Assessment of Placental Hypoxia Biomarkers in Placental Insufficiency Syndromes. Cells 2023; 12:2080. [PMID: 37626890 PMCID: PMC10452979 DOI: 10.3390/cells12162080] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/14/2023] [Revised: 08/04/2023] [Accepted: 08/15/2023] [Indexed: 08/27/2023] Open
Abstract
Placental hypoxia poses significant risks to both the developing fetus and the mother during pregnancy, underscoring the importance of early detection and monitoring. Effectively identifying placental hypoxia and evaluating the deterioration in placental function requires reliable biomarkers. Molecular biomarkers in placental tissue can only be determined post-delivery and while maternal blood biomarkers can be measured over time, they can merely serve as proxies for placental function. Therefore, there is an increasing demand for non-invasive imaging techniques capable of directly assessing the placental condition over time. Recent advancements in imaging technologies, including photoacoustic and magnetic resonance imaging, offer promising tools for detecting and monitoring placental hypoxia. Integrating molecular and imaging biomarkers may revolutionize the detection and monitoring of placental hypoxia, improving pregnancy outcomes and reducing long-term health complications. This review describes current research on molecular and imaging biomarkers of placental hypoxia both in human and animal studies and aims to explore the benefits of an integrated approach throughout gestation.
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Affiliation(s)
- Fatimah M. Al Darwish
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Physics, Amsterdam Cardiovascular Sciences, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands; (B.F.C.); (G.J.S.)
| | - Lotte Meijerink
- Department of Obstetrics, Wilhelmina Children’s Hospital, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, 3584 EA Utrecht, The Netherlands; (L.M.); (M.B.); (T.L.); (F.T.)
| | - Bram F. Coolen
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Physics, Amsterdam Cardiovascular Sciences, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands; (B.F.C.); (G.J.S.)
| | - Gustav J. Strijkers
- Department of Biomedical Engineering and Physics, Amsterdam Cardiovascular Sciences, Amsterdam UMC, University of Amsterdam, 1105 AZ Amsterdam, The Netherlands; (B.F.C.); (G.J.S.)
| | - Mireille Bekker
- Department of Obstetrics, Wilhelmina Children’s Hospital, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, 3584 EA Utrecht, The Netherlands; (L.M.); (M.B.); (T.L.); (F.T.)
| | - Titia Lely
- Department of Obstetrics, Wilhelmina Children’s Hospital, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, 3584 EA Utrecht, The Netherlands; (L.M.); (M.B.); (T.L.); (F.T.)
| | - Fieke Terstappen
- Department of Obstetrics, Wilhelmina Children’s Hospital, University Medical Center Utrecht, Utrecht University, 3584 EA Utrecht, The Netherlands; (L.M.); (M.B.); (T.L.); (F.T.)
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16
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Slator PJ, Verdera JA, Tomi-Tricot R, Hajnal JV, Alexander DC, Hutter J. Low-Field Combined Diffusion-Relaxation MRI for Mapping Placenta Structure and Function. medRxiv 2023:2023.06.06.23290983. [PMID: 37333076 PMCID: PMC10274995 DOI: 10.1101/2023.06.06.23290983] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/20/2023]
Abstract
Purpose Demonstrating quantitative multi-parametric mapping in the placenta with combined T 2 ∗ -diffusion MRI at low-field (0.55T). Methods We present 57 placental MRI scans performed on a commercially available 0.55T scanner. We acquired the images using a combined T 2 ∗ -diffusion technique scan that simultaneously acquires multiple diffusion preparations and echo times. We processed the data to produce quantitative T 2 ∗ and diffusivity maps using a combined T 2 ∗ -ADC model. We compared the derived quantitative parameters across gestation in healthy controls and a cohort of clinical cases. Results Quantitative parameter maps closely resemble those from previous experiments at higher field strength, with similar trends in T 2 ∗ and ADC against gestational age observed. Conclusion Combined T 2 ∗ -diffusion placental MRI is reliably achievable at 0.55T. The advantages of lower field strength - such as cost, ease of deployment, increased accessibility and patient comfort due to the wider bore, and increased T 2 ∗ for larger dynamic ranges - can support the widespread roll out of placental MRI as an adjunct to ultrasound during pregnancy.
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Affiliation(s)
- Paddy J Slator
- Centre for Medical Image Computing and Department of Computer Science, University College London, London, United Kingdom
- Cardiff University Brain Research Imaging Centre, School of Psychology, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
- School of Computer Science and Informatics, Cardiff University, Cardiff, UK
| | - Jordina Aviles Verdera
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Raphael Tomi-Tricot
- MR Research Collaborations, Siemens Healthcare Limited, Camberley, United Kingdom
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Joseph V Hajnal
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Daniel C Alexander
- Centre for Medical Image Computing and Department of Computer Science, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jana Hutter
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
- Biomedical Engineering Department, School of Biomedical Engineering and Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
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17
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Avena-Zampieri CL, Hutter J, Deprez M, Payette K, Hall M, Uus A, Nanda S, Milan A, Seed PT, Rutherford M, Greenough A, Story L. Assessment of normal pulmonary development using functional magnetic resonance imaging techniques. Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM 2023; 5:100935. [PMID: 36933803 PMCID: PMC10711505 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajogmf.2023.100935] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/06/2023] [Revised: 03/10/2023] [Accepted: 03/13/2023] [Indexed: 03/18/2023]
Abstract
BACKGROUND The mainstay of assessment of the fetal lungs in clinical practice is via evaluation of pulmonary size, primarily using 2D ultrasound and more recently with anatomical magnetic resonance imaging. The emergence of advanced magnetic resonance techniques such as T2* relaxometry in combination with the latest motion correction post-processing tools now facilitates assessment of the metabolic activity or perfusion of fetal pulmonary tissue in vivo. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to characterize normal pulmonary development using T2* relaxometry, accounting for fetal motion across gestation. METHODS Datasets from women with uncomplicated pregnancies that delivered at term, were analyzed. All subjects had undergone T2-weighted imaging and T2* relaxometry on a Phillips 3T magnetic resonance imaging system antenatally. T2* relaxometry of the fetal thorax was performed using a gradient echo single-shot echo planar imaging sequence. Following correction for fetal motion using slice-to-volume reconstruction, T2* maps were generated using in-house pipelines. Lungs were manually segmented and mean T2* values calculated for the right and left lungs individually, and for both lungs combined. Lung volumes were generated from the segmented images, and the right and left lungs, as well as both lungs combined were assessed. RESULTS Eighty-seven datasets were suitable for analysis. The mean gestation at scan was 29.9±4.3 weeks (range: 20.6-38.3) and mean gestation at delivery was 40±1.2 weeks (range: 37.1-42.4). Mean T2* values of the lungs increased over gestation for right and left lungs individually and for both lungs assessed together (P=.003; P=.04; P=.003, respectively). Right, left, and total lung volumes were also strongly correlated with increasing gestational age (P<.001 in all cases). CONCLUSION This large study assessed developing lungs using T2* imaging across a wide gestational age range. Mean T2* values increased with gestational age, which may reflect increasing perfusion and metabolic requirements and alterations in tissue composition as gestation advances. In the future, evaluation of findings in fetuses with conditions known to be associated with pulmonary morbidity may lead to enhanced prognostication antenatally, consequently improving counseling and perinatal care planning.
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Affiliation(s)
- Carla L Avena-Zampieri
- Department of Women and Children's Health, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (XX Avena-Zampieri, XX Hall, XX Seed, XX Greenough, and XX Story); Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (Ms Avena-Zampieri, Dr Hutter, Mr Deprez, Ms Payette, Dr Hall, Ms Uus, Prof Rutherford, and Dr Story).
| | - Jana Hutter
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (Ms Avena-Zampieri, Dr Hutter, Mr Deprez, Ms Payette, Dr Hall, Ms Uus, Prof Rutherford, and Dr Story)
| | - Maria Deprez
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (Ms Avena-Zampieri, Dr Hutter, Mr Deprez, Ms Payette, Dr Hall, Ms Uus, Prof Rutherford, and Dr Story); Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (Ms Deprez, Ms Payette, and Ms Uus)
| | - Kelly Payette
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (Ms Avena-Zampieri, Dr Hutter, Mr Deprez, Ms Payette, Dr Hall, Ms Uus, Prof Rutherford, and Dr Story); Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (Ms Deprez, Ms Payette, and Ms Uus)
| | - Megan Hall
- Department of Women and Children's Health, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (XX Avena-Zampieri, XX Hall, XX Seed, XX Greenough, and XX Story); Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (Ms Avena-Zampieri, Dr Hutter, Mr Deprez, Ms Payette, Dr Hall, Ms Uus, Prof Rutherford, and Dr Story); Fetal Medicine Unit, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom (Dr Hall, Dr Nanda, and Dr Story)
| | - Alena Uus
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (Ms Avena-Zampieri, Dr Hutter, Mr Deprez, Ms Payette, Dr Hall, Ms Uus, Prof Rutherford, and Dr Story); Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (Ms Deprez, Ms Payette, and Ms Uus)
| | - Surabhi Nanda
- Fetal Medicine Unit, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom (Dr Hall, Dr Nanda, and Dr Story)
| | - Anna Milan
- Neonatal Unit, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom (Dr Milan)
| | - Paul T Seed
- Department of Women and Children's Health, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (XX Avena-Zampieri, XX Hall, XX Seed, XX Greenough, and XX Story)
| | - Mary Rutherford
- Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (Ms Avena-Zampieri, Dr Hutter, Mr Deprez, Ms Payette, Dr Hall, Ms Uus, Prof Rutherford, and Dr Story)
| | - Anne Greenough
- Department of Women and Children's Health, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (XX Avena-Zampieri, XX Hall, XX Seed, XX Greenough, and XX Story); Neonatal Unit, King's College Hospital, London, United Kingdom (Prof Greenough); National Institute for Health and Care Research Biomedical Research Centre based at Guy's & St Thomas NHS Foundation Trusts and King's College London, London, United Kingdom (Prof Greenough)
| | - Lisa Story
- Department of Women and Children's Health, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (XX Avena-Zampieri, XX Hall, XX Seed, XX Greenough, and XX Story); Centre for the Developing Brain, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom (Ms Avena-Zampieri, Dr Hutter, Mr Deprez, Ms Payette, Dr Hall, Ms Uus, Prof Rutherford, and Dr Story); Fetal Medicine Unit, Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London, United Kingdom (Dr Hall, Dr Nanda, and Dr Story)
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18
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Hall M, de Marvao A, Schweitzer R, Cromb D, Colford K, Jandu P, O'Regan DP, Ho A, Price A, Chappell LC, Rutherford MA, Story L, Lamata P, Hutter J. Characterisation of placental, fetal brain and maternal cardiac structure and function in pre-eclampsia using MRI. medRxiv 2023:2023.04.24.23289069. [PMID: 37163073 PMCID: PMC10168502 DOI: 10.1101/2023.04.24.23289069] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 05/11/2023]
Abstract
Background Pre-eclampsia is a multiorgan disease of pregnancy that has short- and long-term implications for the woman and fetus, whose immediate impact is poorly understood. We present a novel multi-system approach to MRI investigation of pre-eclampsia, with acquisition of maternal cardiac, placental, and fetal brain anatomical and functional imaging. Methods A prospective study was carried out recruiting pregnant women with pre-eclampsia, chronic hypertension, or no medical complications, and a non-pregnant female cohort. All women underwent a cardiac MRI, and pregnant women underwent a fetal-placental MRI. Cardiac analysis for structural, morphological and flow data was undertaken; placenta and fetal brain volumetric and T2* data were obtained. All results were corrected for gestational age. Results Seventy-eight MRIs were obtained during pregnancy. Pregnancies affected by pre-eclampsia demonstrated lower placental and fetal brain T2*. Within the pre-eclampsia group, three placental T2* results were within the normal range, these were the only cases with normal placental histopathology. Similarly, three fetal brain T2* results were within the normal range; these cases had no evidence of cerebral redistribution on fetal Dopplers. Cardiac MRI analysis demonstrated higher left ventricular mass in pre-eclampsia with 3D modelling revealing additional specific characteristics of eccentricity and outflow track remodelling. Conclusions We present the first holistic assessment of the immediate implications of pre-eclampsia on the placenta, maternal heart, and fetal brain. As well as having potential clinical implications for the risk-stratification and management of women with pre-eclampsia, this gives an insight into disease mechanism.
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Affiliation(s)
- Megan Hall
- Department of Women and Children’s Health, King’s College London, UK
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King’s College London, UK
| | - Antonio de Marvao
- Department of Women and Children’s Health, King’s College London, UK
- School of Cardiovascular Medicine, King’s College London, UK
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, Imperial College London, UK
| | - Ronny Schweitzer
- School of Cardiovascular Medicine, King’s College London, UK
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, Imperial College London, UK
| | - Daniel Cromb
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King’s College London, UK
| | | | - Priya Jandu
- GKT School of Medical Education, King’s College London, UK
| | - Declan P O'Regan
- MRC London Institute of Medical Sciences, Imperial College London, UK
| | - Alison Ho
- Department of Women and Children’s Health, King’s College London, UK
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King’s College London, UK
| | - Anthony Price
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King’s College London, UK
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King’s College London, UK
| | - Lucy C. Chappell
- Department of Women and Children’s Health, King’s College London, UK
| | | | - Lisa Story
- Department of Women and Children’s Health, King’s College London, UK
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King’s College London, UK
| | - Pablo Lamata
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King’s College London, UK
| | - Jana Hutter
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King’s College London, UK
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King’s College London, UK
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19
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Hutter J, Slator PJ, Avena Zampieri C, Hall M, Rutherford M, Story L. Multi-modal MRI reveals changes in placental function following preterm premature rupture of membranes. Magn Reson Med 2023; 89:1151-1159. [PMID: 36255151 PMCID: PMC10091779 DOI: 10.1002/mrm.29483] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2022] [Revised: 09/18/2022] [Accepted: 09/20/2022] [Indexed: 02/02/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Preterm premature rupture of membranes complicates up to 40% of premature deliveries. Fetal infection may occur in the absence of maternal symptoms, delaying diagnosis and increasing morbidity and mortality. A noninvasive antenatal assessment of early signs of placental inflammation is therefore urgently required. METHODS Sixteen women with preterm premature rupture of membranes < 34 weeks gestation and 60 women with uncomplicated pregnancies were prospectively recruited. A modified diffusion-weighted spin-echo single shot EPI sequence with a diffusion preparation acquiring 264 unique parameter combinations in < 9 min was obtained on a clinical 3 Tesla MRI scanner. The data was fitted to a 2-compartment T 2 * $$ {\mathrm{T}}_2^{\ast } $$ -intravoxel incoherent motion model comprising fast and slowly circulating fluid pools to obtain quantitative information on perfusion, density, and tissue composition. Z values were calculated, and correlation with time from between the rupture of membranes and the scan, gestational age at delivery, and time between scan and delivery assessed. RESULTS Placental T 2 * $$ {\mathrm{T}}_2^{\ast } $$ was significantly reduced in preterm premature rupture of membranes, and the 2-compartmental model demonstrated that this decline is mainly linked to the perfusion component observed in the placental parenchyma. Multi-modal MRI measurement of placental function is linked to gestational age at delivery and time from membrane rupture. CONCLUSION More complex models and data acquisition can potentially improve fitting of the underlying etiology of preterm birth compared with individual single-contrast models and contribute to additional insights in the future. This will need validation in larger cohorts. A multi-modal MRI acquisition between rupture of the membranes and delivery can be used to measure placental function and is linked to gestational age at delivery.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jana Hutter
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | | | - Carla Avena Zampieri
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Megan Hall
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Institute for Women's and Children's Health, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Fetal Medicine Unit, St Thomas' Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Mary Rutherford
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Lisa Story
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Institute for Women's and Children's Health, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.,Fetal Medicine Unit, St Thomas' Hospital, London, United Kingdom
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20
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Sun Z, Wu W, Zhao P, Wang Q, Woodard PK, Nelson DM, Odibo A, Cahill A, Wang Y. Association of intraplacental oxygenation patterns on dual-contrast MRI with placental abnormality and fetal brain oxygenation. Ultrasound Obstet Gynecol 2023; 61:215-223. [PMID: 35638228 PMCID: PMC9708928 DOI: 10.1002/uog.24959] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/13/2022] [Revised: 05/15/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 05/27/2023]
Abstract
OBJECTIVES Most human in-vivo placental imaging techniques are unable to distinguish and characterize various placental compartments, such as the intervillous space (IVS), placental vessels (PV) and placental tissue (PT), limiting their specificity. We describe a method that employs T2* and diffusion-weighted magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) data to differentiate automatically placental compartments, quantify their oxygenation properties and identify placental lesions (PL) in vivo. We also investigate the association between placental oxygenation patterns and fetal brain oxygenation. METHODS This was a prospective study conducted between 2018 and 2021 in which dual-contrast clinical MRI data (T2* and diffusion-weighted MRI) were acquired from patients between 20 and 38 weeks' gestation. We trained a fuzzy clustering method to analyze T2* and diffusion-weighted MRI data and assign placental voxels to one of four clusters, based on their distinct imaging domain features. The new method divided automatically the placenta into IVS, PV, PT and PL compartments and characterized their oxygenation changes throughout pregnancy. RESULTS A total of 27 patients were recruited, of whom five developed pregnancy complications. Total placental oxygenation level and T2* did not demonstrate a statistically significant temporal correlation with gestational age (GA) (R2 = 0.060, P = 0.27). In contrast, the oxygenation level reflected by T2* values in the placental IVS (R2 = 0.51, P = 0.0002) and PV (R2 = 0.76, P = 1.1 × 10-7 ) decreased significantly with advancing GA. Oxygenation levels in the PT did not show any temporal change during pregnancy (R2 = 0.00044, P = 0.93). A strong spatial-dependent correlation between PV oxygenation level and GA was observed. The strongest negative correlation between PV oxygenation and GA (R2 = 0.73, P = 4.5 × 10-7 ) was found at the fetal-vessel-dominated region close to the chorionic plate. The location and extent of the placental abnormality were automatically delineated and quantified in the five women with clinically confirmed placental pathology. Compared to the averaged total placental oxygenation, placental IVS oxygenation level best reflected fetal brain oxygenation level during fetal development. CONCLUSION Based on clinically feasible dual-MRI, our method enables accurate spatiotemporal quantification of placental compartment and fetal brain oxygenation across different GAs. This information should improve our knowledge of human placenta development and its relationship with normal and abnormal pregnancy. © 2022 The Authors. Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
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Affiliation(s)
- Z. Sun
- Department of Biomedical EngineeringWashington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
- Department of Obstetrics and GynecologyWashington University School of Medicine, Washington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
| | - W. Wu
- Department of Biomedical EngineeringWashington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
- Department of Obstetrics and GynecologyWashington University School of Medicine, Washington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
| | - P. Zhao
- Department of Obstetrics and GynecologyWashington University School of Medicine, Washington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
| | - Q. Wang
- Mallinckrodt Institute of RadiologyWashington University School of Medicine, Washington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
| | - P. K. Woodard
- Department of Biomedical EngineeringWashington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
- Mallinckrodt Institute of RadiologyWashington University School of Medicine, Washington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
| | - D. M. Nelson
- Department of Obstetrics and GynecologyWashington University School of Medicine, Washington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
| | - A. Odibo
- Department of Obstetrics and GynecologyWashington University School of Medicine, Washington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
| | - A. Cahill
- Department of Women's HealthUniversity of Texas at Austin, Dell Medical SchoolAustinTXUSA
| | - Y. Wang
- Department of Biomedical EngineeringWashington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
- Department of Obstetrics and GynecologyWashington University School of Medicine, Washington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
- Mallinckrodt Institute of RadiologyWashington University School of Medicine, Washington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
- Department of Electrical & Systems EngineeringWashington University in St LouisSt LouisMOUSA
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21
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Baadsgaard K, Hansen DN, Peters DA, Frøkjær JB, Sinding M, Sørensen A. T2* weighted fetal MRI and the correlation with placental dysfunction. Placenta 2023; 131:90-97. [PMID: 36565490 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2022.12.002] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/28/2022] [Revised: 11/29/2022] [Accepted: 12/12/2022] [Indexed: 12/23/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Transverse relaxation time (T2*) is related to tissue oxygenation and morphology. We aimed to describe T2* weighted MRI in selected fetal organs in normal pregnancies, and to investigate the correlation between fetal organ T2* and placental T2*, birthweight (BW) deviation, and redistribution of fetal blood flow. METHODS T2*-weighted MRI was performed in 126 singleton pregnancies between 23+6- and 41+3-weeks' gestation. The T2* value was obtained from the placenta and fetal organs (brain, lungs, heart, liver, kidneys, and spleen). In normal BW pregnancies (BW > 10th centile), the correlation between the T2* value and gestational age (GA) at MRI was estimated by linear regression. The correlation between fetal organ Z-score and BW group was demonstrated by boxplots and investigated by analysis of variance (ANOVA) for each organ. RESULTS In normal BW pregnancies fetal organ T2* was negatively correlated with GA. We found a significant correlation between BW group and fetal organ T2* z-score in the fetal heart, kidney, lung and spleen. A positive linear correlation was demonstrated between fetal organ T2* and outcomes related to placental function such as BW deviation and placenta T2* in all investigated fetal organs except for the fetal liver. In the fetal heart, kidneys, and spleen the T2* value showed a significant correlation with fetal redistribution of blood flow (Middle cerebral artery Pulsatility Index) before delivery. DISCUSSION Fetal T2* is correlated with BW, placental function, and redistribution of fetal blood flow, suggesting that fetal organ T2* reflects fetal oxygenation and morphological changes related to placental dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kirstine Baadsgaard
- Department of Clinical Medicine Aalborg University, Søndre Skovvej 15, 9000, Aalborg, Denmark; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Aalborg University Hospital, Reberbansgade 15, 9000, Aalborg, Denmark.
| | - Ditte N Hansen
- Department of Clinical Medicine Aalborg University, Søndre Skovvej 15, 9000, Aalborg, Denmark; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Aalborg University Hospital, Reberbansgade 15, 9000, Aalborg, Denmark
| | - David A Peters
- Department of Clinical Engineering, Central Denmark Region, Universitetsbyen 25, 8000, Aarhus C, Denmark
| | - Jens B Frøkjær
- Department of Clinical Medicine Aalborg University, Søndre Skovvej 15, 9000, Aalborg, Denmark; Department of Radiology, Aalborg University Hospital, Reberbansgade 15, 9000, Aalborg, Denmark
| | - Marianne Sinding
- Department of Clinical Medicine Aalborg University, Søndre Skovvej 15, 9000, Aalborg, Denmark; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Aalborg University Hospital, Reberbansgade 15, 9000, Aalborg, Denmark
| | - Anne Sørensen
- Department of Clinical Medicine Aalborg University, Søndre Skovvej 15, 9000, Aalborg, Denmark; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Aalborg University Hospital, Reberbansgade 15, 9000, Aalborg, Denmark
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22
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Agrawal S, Parks WT, Kingdom JC. Uterine and umbilical artery Doppler combined with placental growth factor assay for placental function expertise in the assessment of fetal growth restriction: a response. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2023; 228:108-109. [PMID: 36108730 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajog.2022.09.013] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/22/2022] [Accepted: 09/06/2022] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Affiliation(s)
- Swati Agrawal
- Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine (Placenta Program), Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Mount Sinai Hospital, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - W Tony Parks
- Department of Pathology and Laboratory Medicine, Mount Sinai Hospital, University of Toronto, Ontario, Canada
| | - John C Kingdom
- Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine (Placenta Program), Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Mount Sinai Hospital, University of Toronto, 600 University Ave., Ontario, Canada M5G 1X5.
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23
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Himoto Y, Fujimoto K, Kido A, Otani S, Matsumoto YK, Mogami H, Nakao KK, Kurata Y, Moribata Y, Chigusa Y, Minamiguchi S, Mandai M, Nakamoto Y. Risk Stratification for Pregnancies Diagnosed With Fetal Growth Restriction Based on Placental MRI. J Magn Reson Imaging 2022; 56:1650-1658. [PMID: 35713388 DOI: 10.1002/jmri.28298] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/07/2022] [Revised: 05/28/2022] [Accepted: 05/31/2022] [Indexed: 01/04/2023] Open
Abstract
BACKGROUND Diagnosis of fetal growth restriction (FGR) entails difficulties with differentiating fetuses not fulfilling their growth potential because of pathologic conditions, such as placental insufficiency, from constitutionally small fetuses. The feasibility of placental MRI for risk stratification among pregnancies diagnosed with FGR remains unexplored. PURPOSE To explore quantitative MRI features useful to identify pregnancies with unfavorable outcomes and to assess the diagnostic performance of visual analysis of MRI to detect pregnancies with unfavorable outcomes, among pregnancies diagnosed with FGR. STUDY TYPE Retrospective. POPULATION Thirteen pregnancies with unfavorable outcomes (preterm emergency cesarean section or intrauterine fetal death) and 11 pregnancies with favorable outcomes performed MRI at gestational weeks 21-36. FIELD STRENGTH/SEQUENCE A 5-T, half-Fourier-acquired single-shot turbo spin echo (HASTE), spin-echo echo-planar imaging (SE-EPI) and T2 map derived from SE-EPI. ASSESSMENT Placental size on HASTE sequences and T2 mapping-based histogram features were extracted. Three radiologists qualitatively evaluated the visibility of maternal cotyledon on HASTE and SE-EPI sequences with echo times (TEs) = 60, 90, and 120 msec using 3-point Likert scales: 0, absent; 1, equivocal; and 2, present. STATISTICAL TESTS Welch's t-test or Mann-Whitney U test for quantitative features between the favorable and unfavorable outcome groups. Areas under the receiver operating curves (AUCs) of the three readers' visual analyses to detect pregnancies with unfavorable outcomes. A P value of <0.05 was inferred as statistically significant. RESULTS Placental size (major and minor axis, estimated area of placental bed, and volume of placenta) and T2 mapping-based histogram features (mean, skewness, and kurtosis) were statistically significantly different between the two groups. Visual analysis of HASTE and SE-EPI with TE = 60 msec showed AUCs of 0.80-0.86 to detect pregnancies with unfavorable outcomes. DATA CONCLUSION Placental size, histogram features, and visual analysis of placental MRI may allow for risk stratification regarding outcomes among pregnancies diagnosed with FGR. EVIDENCE LEVEL 3 TECHNICAL EFFICACY: Stage 5.
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Affiliation(s)
- Yuki Himoto
- Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University Hospital, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Koji Fujimoto
- Department of Real World Data Research and Development, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Aki Kido
- Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Satoshi Otani
- Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Yuka Kuriyama Matsumoto
- Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Haruta Mogami
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Kyoko Kameyama Nakao
- Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Yasuhisa Kurata
- Department of Diagnostic Radiology and Nuclear Medicine, Kyoto University Hospital, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Yusaku Moribata
- Preemptive Medicine and Lifestyle-related Disease Research Center, Kyoto University Hospital, Kyoto, Japan
| | | | | | - Masaki Mandai
- Department of Gynecology and Obstetrics, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
| | - Yuji Nakamoto
- Department of Diagnostic Imaging and Nuclear Medicine, Graduate School of Medicine, Kyoto University, Kyoto, Japan
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24
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Hutter J, Kohli V, Dellschaft N, Uus A, Story L, Steinweg JK, Gowland P, Hajnal JV, Rutherford MA. Dynamics of T2* and deformation in the placenta and myometrium during pre-labour contractions. Sci Rep 2022; 12:18542. [PMID: 36329074 DOI: 10.1038/s41598-022-22008-3] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/12/2022] [Accepted: 10/07/2022] [Indexed: 11/06/2022] Open
Abstract
Pre-labour uterine contractions, occurring throughout pregnancy, are an important phenomenon involving the placenta in addition to the myometrium. They alter the uterine environment and thus potentially the blood supply to the fetus and may thus provide crucial insights into the processes of labour. Assessment in-vivo is however restricted due to their unpredictability and the inaccessible nature of the utero-placental compartment. While clinical cardiotocography (CTG) only allows global, pressure-based assessment, functional magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) provides an opportunity to study contractile activity and its effects on the placenta and the fetus in-vivo. This study aims to provide both descriptive and quantitative structural and functional MR assessments of pre-labour contractions in the human uterus. A total of 226 MRI scans (18-41 weeks gestation) from ongoing research studies were analysed, focusing on free-breathing dynamic quantitative whole uterus dynamic T2* maps. These provide an indirect measure of tissue properties such as oxygenation. 22 contractile events were noted visually and both descriptive and quantitative analysis of the myometrial and placental changes including volumetric and T2* variations were undertaken. Processing and analysis was successfully performed, qualitative analysis shows distinct and highly dynamic contraction related characteristics including; alterations in the thickness of the low T2* in the placental bed and other myometrial areas, high intensity vessel-like structures in the myometrium, low-intensity vessel structures within the placental parenchyma and close to the chorionic plate. Quantitative evaluation shows a significant negative correlation between T2* in both contractile and not-contractile regions with gestational age (p < 0.05) as well as a significant reduction in T2* during contractions. The T2* values in the myometrium were however not correlated to gestational age (p > 0.5). The quantitative and qualitative description of uterine pre-labour contractions including dynamic changes and key characteristics aims to contribute to the sparsely available in-vivo information and to provide an in-vivo tool to study this important phenomenon. Further work is required to analyse the origins of these subclinical contractions, their effects in high-risk pregnancies and their ability to determine the likelihood of a successful labour. Assessing T2* distribution as a marker for placental oxygenation could thus potentially complement clinically used cardiotocography measurements in the future.
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25
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Schabel MC, Roberts VHJ, Gibbins KJ, Rincon M, Gaffney JE, Streblow AD, Wright AM, Lo JO, Park B, Kroenke CD, Szczotka K, Blue NR, Page JM, Harvey K, Varner MW, Silver RM, Frias AE. Quantitative longitudinal T2* mapping for assessing placental function and association with adverse pregnancy outcomes across gestation. PLoS One 2022; 17:e0270360. [PMID: 35853003 PMCID: PMC9295947 DOI: 10.1371/journal.pone.0270360] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 3.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/14/2022] [Accepted: 06/09/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022] Open
Abstract
Existing methods for evaluating in vivo placental function fail to reliably detect pregnancies at-risk for adverse outcomes prior to maternal and/or fetal morbidity. Here we report the results of a prospective dual-site longitudinal clinical study of quantitative placental T2* as measured by blood oxygen-level dependent magnetic resonance imaging (BOLD-MRI). The objectives of this study were: 1) to quantify placental T2* at multiple time points across gestation, and its consistency across sites, and 2) to investigate the association between placental T2* and adverse outcomes. 797 successful imaging studies, at up to three time points between 11 and 38 weeks of gestation, were completed in 316 pregnancies. Outcomes were stratified into three groups: (UN) uncomplicated/normal pregnancy, (PA) primary adverse pregnancy, which included hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, birthweight <5th percentile, and/or stillbirth or fetal death, and (SA) secondary abnormal pregnancy, which included abnormal prenatal conditions not included in the PA group such as spontaneous preterm birth or fetal anomalies. Of the 316 pregnancies, 198 (62.6%) were UN, 70 (22.2%) PA, and 48 (15.2%) SA outcomes. We found that the evolution of placental T2* across gestation was well described by a sigmoid model, with T2* decreasing continuously from a high plateau level early in gestation, through an inflection point around 30 weeks, and finally approaching a second, lower plateau in late gestation. Model regression revealed significantly lower T2* in the PA group than in UN pregnancies starting at 15 weeks and continuing through 33 weeks. T2* percentiles were computed for individual scans relative to UN group regression, and z-scores and receiver operating characteristic (ROC) curves calculated for association of T2* with pregnancy outcome. Overall, differences between UN and PA groups were statistically significant across gestation, with large effect sizes in mid- and late- pregnancy. The area under the curve (AUC) for placental T2* percentile and PA pregnancy outcome was 0.71, with the strongest predictive power (AUC of 0.76) at the mid-gestation time period (20–30 weeks). Our data demonstrate that placental T2* measurements are strongly associated with pregnancy outcomes often attributed to placental insufficiency. Trial registration: ClinicalTrials.gov: NCT02749851.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matthias C. Schabel
- Advanced Imaging Research Center, Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU), Portland, Oregon, United States of America
| | - Victoria H. J. Roberts
- Division of Reproductive and Developmental Sciences, Oregon National Primate Research Center (ONPRC), OHSU, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
- * E-mail:
| | - Karen J. Gibbins
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, OHSU, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
| | - Monica Rincon
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, OHSU, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
| | - Jessica E. Gaffney
- Division of Reproductive and Developmental Sciences, Oregon National Primate Research Center (ONPRC), OHSU, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
| | - Aaron D. Streblow
- Division of Reproductive and Developmental Sciences, Oregon National Primate Research Center (ONPRC), OHSU, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
| | - Adam M. Wright
- Division of Reproductive and Developmental Sciences, Oregon National Primate Research Center (ONPRC), OHSU, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
| | - Jamie O. Lo
- Division of Reproductive and Developmental Sciences, Oregon National Primate Research Center (ONPRC), OHSU, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, OHSU, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
| | - Byung Park
- Biostatistics Shared Resource, Knight Cancer Institute, OHSU, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
| | - Christopher D. Kroenke
- Advanced Imaging Research Center, Oregon Health and Science University (OHSU), Portland, Oregon, United States of America
- Division of Neuroscience, ONPRC, OHSU, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
| | - Kathryn Szczotka
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Nathan R. Blue
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Jessica M. Page
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Kathy Harvey
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Michael W. Varner
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Robert M. Silver
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah, United States of America
| | - Antonio E. Frias
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, OHSU, Portland, Oregon, United States of America
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26
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Hall M, Hutter J, Suff N, Zampieri CA, Tribe RM, Shennan A, Rutherford M, Story L. Antenatal diagnosis of chorioamnionitis: A review of the potential role of fetal and placental imaging. Prenat Diagn 2022; 42:1049-1058. [PMID: 35670265 PMCID: PMC9543023 DOI: 10.1002/pd.6188] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 01/18/2022] [Revised: 05/09/2022] [Accepted: 05/17/2022] [Indexed: 11/12/2022]
Abstract
Chorioamnionitis is present in up to 70% of spontaneous preterm births. It is defined as an acute inflammation of the chorion, with or without involvement of the amnion, and is evidence of a maternal immunological response to infection. A fetal inflammatory response can coexist and is diagnosed on placental histopathology postnatally. Fetal inflammatory response syndrome (FIRS) is associated with poorer fetal and neonatal outcomes. The only antenatal diagnostic test is amniocentesis which carries risks of miscarriage or preterm birth. Imaging of the fetal immune system, in particular the thymus and the spleen, and the placenta may give valuable information antenatally regarding the diagnosis of fetal inflammatory response. While ultrasound is largely limited to structural information, MRI can complement this with functional information that may provide insight into the metabolic activities of the fetal immune system and placenta. This review discusses fetal and placental imaging in pregnancies complicated by chorioamnionitis and their potential future use in achieving non-invasive antenatal diagnosis. This article is protected by copyright. All rights reserved.
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Affiliation(s)
- Megan Hall
- Department of Women and Children's Health, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College London, London, UK.,Centre for the Developing Brain, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Jana Hutter
- Centre for the Developing Brain, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Natalie Suff
- Department of Women and Children's Health, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Carla Avena Zampieri
- Centre for the Developing Brain, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Rachel M Tribe
- Department of Women and Children's Health, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Andrew Shennan
- Department of Women and Children's Health, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Mary Rutherford
- Centre for the Developing Brain, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Lisa Story
- Department of Women and Children's Health, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College London, London, UK.,Centre for the Developing Brain, St Thomas' Hospital, King's College London, London, UK
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27
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Agrawal S, Parks WT, Zeng HD, Ravichandran A, Ashwal E, Windrim RC, Hobson SR, Melamed N, Kingdom JC. Diagnostic Utility of Serial Circulating Placenta Growth Factor Levels and Uterine Artery Doppler Waveforms to Diagnose Underlying Placental Diseases in Pregnancies at High-Risk of Placental Dysfunction. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2022:S0002-9378(22)00394-5. [PMID: 35644246 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajog.2022.05.043] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/09/2022] [Revised: 05/18/2022] [Accepted: 05/19/2022] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Placental pathology assessment following delivery in pregnancies complicated by preeclampsia, fetal growth restriction, abruption, and stillbirth reveals a range of underlying diseases. The most common pathology is maternal vascular malperfusion, characterized by high-resistance uterine artery Doppler waveforms and abnormal expression of circulating maternal angiogenic growth factors. Rare placental diseases (massive perivillous fibrinoid deposition and chronic histiocytic intervillositis) are reported to have high recurrence risks, but their associations with uterine artery Doppler waveforms and angiogenic growth factors are presently ill-defined. OBJECTIVE To characterize the patterns of serial placental growth factor measurements and uterine artery Doppler waveform assessments in pregnancies that develop specific types of placental pathology to gain insight into their relationships with the timing of disease onset and pregnancy outcomes. STUDY DESIGN A retrospective cohort study conducted between January 2017 and November 2021 included all singleton pregnancies with at least 1 measurement of maternal circulating placental growth factor between 16 and 36 weeks' gestation, delivery at our institution, and placental pathology analysis demonstrating diagnostic features of maternal vascular malperfusion, fetal vascular malperfusion, villitis of unknown etiology, chronic histiocytic intervillositis, or massive perivillous fibrinoid deposition. Profiles of circulating placental growth factor as gestational age advanced were compared between these placental pathologies. Maternal and perinatal outcomes were recorded. RESULTS A total of 337 pregnancies from 329 individuals met our inclusion criteria. These comprised placental pathology diagnoses of maternal vascular malperfusion (n=109), fetal vascular malperfusion (n=87), villitis of unknown etiology (n=96), chronic histiocytic intervillositis (n=16), and massive perivillous fibrinoid deposition (n=29). Among patients who developed maternal vascular malperfusion, placental growth factor levels gradually declined as pregnancy progressed (placental growth factor <10th percentile at 16-20 weeks' gestation in 42.9%; 20-24 weeks in 61.9%; 24-28 weeks in 77%; and 28-32 weeks in 81.4%) accompanied by mean uterine artery Doppler pulsatility index >95th percentile in 71.6% cases. Patients who developed either fetal vascular malperfusion or villitis of unknown etiology mostly exhibited normal circulating placental growth factor values in association with normal uterine artery Doppler waveforms (mean [standard deviation] pulsatility index values: fetal vascular malperfusion, 1.14 [0.49]; villitis of unknown etiology, 1.13 [0.45]). Patients who developed either chronic histiocytic intervillositis or massive perivillous fibrinoid deposition exhibited persistently low placental growth factor levels from the early second trimester (placental growth factor <10th centile at 16-20 weeks' gestation in 80% and 77.8%, respectively; 20-24 weeks in 88.9% and 63.6%; 24-28 weeks in 85.7% and 75%), all in combination with normal uterine artery Doppler waveforms (mean pulsatility index >95th centile: chronic histiocytic intervillositis, 25%; massive perivillous fibrinoid deposition, 37.9%). Preeclampsia developed in 83 of 337 (24.6%) patients and was most common in those developing maternal vascular malperfusion (54/109, 49.5%) followed by chronic histiocytic intervillositis (7/16, 43.8%). There were 29 stillbirths in the cohort (maternal vascular malperfusion, n=10 [9.2%]; fetal vascular malperfusion, n=5 [5.7%]; villitis of unknown etiology, n=1 [1.0%]; chronic histiocytic intervillositis, n=7 [43.8%]; massive perivillous fibrinoid deposition, n=6 [20.7%]). Most patients experiencing stillbirth exhibited normal uterine artery Doppler waveforms (21/29, 72.4%) and had nonmaternal vascular malperfusion pathologies (19/29, 65.5%). By contrast, 28 of 29 (96.5%) patients experiencing stillbirth had ≥1 low placental growth factor values before fetal death. CONCLUSION Serial circulating maternal placental growth factor tests, in combination with uterine artery Doppler waveform assessments in the second trimester, may indicate the likely underlying type of placental pathology mediating severe adverse perinatal events. This approach has the potential to test disease-specific therapeutic strategies to improve clinical outcomes. Serial placental growth factor testing, compared with uterine artery Doppler studies, identifies a greater proportion of patients destined to have a poor perinatal outcome because diseases other than maternal vascular malperfusion are characterized by normal uteroplacental circulation.
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Colford K, Price AN, Sigurdardottir J, Fotaki A, Steinweg J, Story L, Ho A, Chappell LC, Hajnal JV, Rutherford M, Pushparajah K, Lamata P, Hutter J. Cardiac and placental imaging (CARP) in pregnancy to assess aetiology of preeclampsia. Placenta 2022; 122:46-55. [PMID: 35430505 PMCID: PMC9810538 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2022.03.012] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/25/2021] [Revised: 02/12/2022] [Accepted: 03/01/2022] [Indexed: 01/07/2023]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION The CARP study aims to investigate placental function, cardiac function and fetal growth comprehensively during pregnancy, a time of maximal cardiac stress, to work towards disentangling the complex cardiac and placental interactions presenting in the aetiology of pre-eclampsia as well as predicting maternal Cardiovascular Disease (CVD) risk in later life. BACKGROUND The involvement of the cardiovascular system in pre-eclampsia, one of the most serious complications of pregnancy, is evident. While the manifestations of pre-eclampsia during pregnancy (high blood pressure, multi-organ disease, and placental dysfunction) resolve after delivery, a lifelong elevated CVD risk remains. METHOD An assessment including both cardiac and placental Magnetic Resonance Imaging (MRI) optimised for use in pregnancy and bespoke to the expected changes was developed. Simultaneous structural and functional MRI data from the placenta, the heart and the fetus were obtained in a total of 32 pregnant women (gestational ages from 18.1 to 37.5 weeks), including uncomplicated pregnancies and five cases with early onset pre-eclampsia. RESULTS The achieved comprehensive MR acquisition was able to demonstrate a phenotype associated with pre-eclampsia linking both placental and cardiac factors, reduced mean T2* (p < 0.005), increased heterogeneity (p < 0.005) and a trend towards an increase in cardiac work, larger average mass (109.4 vs 93.65 gr), wall thickness (7.0 vs 6.4 mm), blood pool volume (135.7 vs 127.48 mL) and mass to volume ratio (0.82 vs 0.75). The cardiac output in the controls was, controlling for gestational age, positively correlated with placental volume (p < 0.05). DISCUSSION The CARP study constitutes the first joint assessment of functional and structural properties of the cardiac system and the placenta during pregnancy. Early indications of cardiac remodelling in pre-eclampsia were demonstrated paving the way for larger studies.
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Affiliation(s)
- Kathleen Colford
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK,Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Anthony N. Price
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK,Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Julie Sigurdardottir
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK,Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Anastasia Fotaki
- Department of Congenital Heart Disease, Evelina Children's Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Johannes Steinweg
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK,Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Lisa Story
- Academic Women's Health Department, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Alison Ho
- Academic Women's Health Department, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Lucy C. Chappell
- Academic Women's Health Department, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Joseph V. Hajnal
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK,Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Mary Rutherford
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK,Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Kuberan Pushparajah
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK,Department of Congenital Heart Disease, Evelina Children's Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Pablo Lamata
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Jana Hutter
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK,Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK,Corresponding author. Perinatal Imaging, 1st Floor South Wing, St THomas' Hospital, Westminster Bridge Road, SE17EH, London, UK.
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29
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Abulnaga SM, Turk EA, Bessmeltsev M, Grant PE, Solomon J, Golland P. Volumetric Parameterization of the Placenta to a Flattened Template. IEEE Trans Med Imaging 2022; 41:925-936. [PMID: 34784274 PMCID: PMC9069541 DOI: 10.1109/tmi.2021.3128743] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 06/13/2023]
Abstract
We present a volumetric mesh-based algorithm for parameterizing the placenta to a flattened template to enable effective visualization of local anatomy and function. MRI shows potential as a research tool as it provides signals directly related to placental function. However, due to the curved and highly variable in vivo shape of the placenta, interpreting and visualizing these images is difficult. We address interpretation challenges by mapping the placenta so that it resembles the familiar ex vivo shape. We formulate the parameterization as an optimization problem for mapping the placental shape represented by a volumetric mesh to a flattened template. We employ the symmetric Dirichlet energy to control local distortion throughout the volume. Local injectivity in the mapping is enforced by a constrained line search during the gradient descent optimization. We validate our method using a research study of 111 placental shapes extracted from BOLD MRI images. Our mapping achieves sub-voxel accuracy in matching the template while maintaining low distortion throughout the volume. We demonstrate how the resulting flattening of the placenta improves visualization of anatomy and function. Our code is freely available at https://github.com/mabulnaga/placenta-flattening.
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Ashwal E, Ferreira F, Mei-Dan E, Aviram A, Sherman C, Zaltz A, Kingdom J, Melamed N. The accuracy of Fetoplacental Doppler in distinguishing between growth restricted and constitutionally small fetuses. Placenta 2022; 120:40-48. [DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2022.02.007] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 10/23/2021] [Revised: 12/17/2021] [Accepted: 02/07/2022] [Indexed: 01/05/2023]
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Mizutani T, Kotani T, Kato N, Imai K, Ushida T, Nakano-Kobayashi T, Kinoshita Y, Ito M, Kinoshita F, Yamamuro O, Kajiyama H. Assessment of placental abruption with diffusion-weighted imaging. J Obstet Gynaecol Res 2022; 48:930-937. [PMID: 35194877 DOI: 10.1111/jog.15183] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/21/2021] [Revised: 12/28/2021] [Accepted: 01/26/2022] [Indexed: 11/30/2022]
Abstract
AIM To investigate whether placental abruption without fetal distress could be assessed by apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) values in magnetic resonance imaging (MRI). METHODS We conducted a retrospective case-control study at a single center. ADC values at the lesions of placental abruption in the abruption group (n = 8) were compared to those in the control group (n = 32). In the abruption group, ADC values at the sites of abruption were also compared to those at the nonabruption sites within the same placenta. RESULTS The ADC values in the placental area above the abruption site in the abruption group showed lower values than those in the control group when the slice containing the umbilical cord insertion site was set as the reference, and those values were compared in each corresponding slice. Compared with average ADC values, those above the abruption site in the abruption group were also significantly lower than those in the control group (p < 0.001). Furthermore, ADC values at the area above abruption were lower than those at the nonabruption area of all planes in the abruption group. CONCLUSIONS ADC values at the lesions above the placental abruption site were reduced compared to those in the normal placenta and those in the nonabruption area. Thus, it would be helpful to understand the pathophysiology of placental abruption in expectant management, although further investigations would be needed.
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Affiliation(s)
- Teruyuki Mizutani
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan.,Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Japanese Red Cross Aichi Medical Center Nagoya Daini Hospital, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Tomomi Kotani
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan.,Center for Maternal-Neonatal Care, Nagoya University Hospital, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Noriko Kato
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Japanese Red Cross Aichi Medical Center Nagoya Daini Hospital, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Kenji Imai
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Takafumi Ushida
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Tomoko Nakano-Kobayashi
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Yoshimi Kinoshita
- Diagnostic Radiology, Japanese Red Cross Aichi Medical Center Nagoya Daini Hospital, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Masato Ito
- Diagnostic Radiology, Japanese Red Cross Aichi Medical Center Nagoya Daini Hospital, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Fumie Kinoshita
- Data Science Division, Data Coordinating Center, Department of Advanced Medicine, Nagoya University Hospital, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Osamu Yamamuro
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Japanese Red Cross Aichi Medical Center Nagoya Daini Hospital, Nagoya, Japan
| | - Hiroaki Kajiyama
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Nagoya University Graduate School of Medicine, Nagoya, Japan
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McLaughlin K, Hobson SR, Chandran AR, Agrawal S, Windrim RC, Parks WT, Bowman AW, Sovio U, Smith GC, Kingdom JC. Circulating maternal placental growth factor responses to low-molecular-weight heparin in pregnant patients at risk of placental dysfunction. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2022; 226:S1145-S1156.e1. [PMID: 34461078 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajog.2021.08.027] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/06/2021] [Revised: 08/12/2021] [Accepted: 08/18/2021] [Indexed: 12/18/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Patients at high risk of severe preeclampsia and fetal growth restriction have low circulating levels of placental growth factor and features of maternal vascular malperfusion placental pathology at delivery. Multimodal screening and commencement of aspirin prophylaxis at 11 to 13 weeks' gestation markedly reduces the risk of preterm delivery with preeclampsia. However, the additional role of low-molecular-weight heparin and mechanisms of action remain uncertain. Because low-molecular-weight heparin augments the production and release of placental growth factor in vitro by both placental villi and vascular endothelium, it may be effective to suppress the risk of severe preeclampsia in a niche group of high-risk patients with low circulating placental growth factor in the early second trimester. OBJECTIVE This study aimed to define a gestational age-specific reference range for placental growth factor and to test the hypothesis that prophylactic low-molecular-weight heparin administered in the early second trimester may restore deficient circulating placental growth factor levels and thereby prolong pregnancy. STUDY DESIGN Centile curves for circulating placental growth factor levels from 12 to 36 weeks' gestation were derived using quantile regression of combined data from a published cohort of 4207 unselected nulliparous patients in Cambridge, United Kingdom, at 4 sampling time points (12, 20, 28, and 36 weeks' gestation) and the White majority (n=531) of a healthy nulliparous cohort in Toronto, Canada, at 16 weeks' gestation using the same test platform. Within a specialty high-risk clinic in Toronto, a niche group of 7 patients with a circulating placental growth factor at the <10th centile in the early second trimester received daily prophylactic low-molecular-weight heparin (enoxaparin; 40 mg subcutaneously) and were followed up until delivery (group 1). Their baseline characteristics, delivery details, and placental pathologies were compared with 5 similar patients who did not receive low-molecular-weight heparin during the observation period (group 2) and further with 21 patients who delivered with severe preeclampsia (group 3) in the same institution. RESULTS A gestational age-specific reference range for placental growth factor levels at weekly intervals between 12 and 36 weeks was established for White women with singleton pregnancies. Within group 1, 5 of 7 patients demonstrated a sustained increase in circulating placental growth factor levels, whereas placental growth factor levels did not increase in group 2 or group 3 patients who did not receive low-molecular-weight heparin. Group 1 patients receiving low-molecular-weight heparin therapy exhibited a later gestation at delivery, relative to groups 2 and 3 (36 weeks [33-37] vs 23 weeks [22-26] and 28 weeks [27-31], respectively), and consequently had higher birthweights (1.93 kg [1.1-2.7] vs 0.32 kg [0.19-0.39] and 0.73 kg [0.52-1.03], respectively). The incidence of stillbirth was lowest in group 1 (14% [1 of 7]), relative to groups 2 and 3 (80% [4 of 5] and 29% [6 of 21], respectively). Maternal vascular malperfusion was the most common placental pathology found in association with abnormal uterine artery Doppler. CONCLUSION In patients at high risk of a serious adverse pregnancy outcome owing to placental disease, the addition of low-molecular-weight heparin to aspirin prophylaxis in the early second trimester may restore deficient circulating placental growth factor to mediate an improved perinatal outcome. These data support the implementation of a multicenter pilot randomized control trial where patients are recruited primarily based on the assessment of placental function in the early second trimester.
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Rana S, Burke SD, Karumanchi SA. Imbalances in circulating angiogenic factors in the pathophysiology of preeclampsia and related disorders. Am J Obstet Gynecol 2022; 226:S1019-34. [PMID: 33096092 DOI: 10.1016/j.ajog.2020.10.022] [Citation(s) in RCA: 91] [Impact Index Per Article: 45.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/03/2020] [Revised: 09/26/2020] [Accepted: 10/17/2020] [Indexed: 12/11/2022]
Abstract
Preeclampsia is a devastating medical complication of pregnancy that can lead to significant maternal and fetal morbidity and mortality. It is currently believed that there is abnormal placentation in as early as the first trimester in women destined to develop preeclampsia. Although the etiology of the abnormal placentation is being debated, numerous epidemiologic and experimental studies suggest that imbalances in circulating angiogenic factors released from the placenta are responsible for the maternal signs and symptoms of preeclampsia. In particular, circulating levels of soluble fms-like tyrosine kinase 1, an antiangiogenic factor, are markedly increased in women with preeclampsia, whereas free levels of its ligand, placental, growth factor are markedly diminished. Alterations in these angiogenic factors precede the onset of clinical signs of preeclampsia and correlate with disease severity. Recently, the availability of automated assays for the measurement of angiogenic biomarkers in the plasma, serum, and urine has helped investigators worldwide to demonstrate a key role for these factors in the clinical diagnosis and prediction of preeclampsia. Numerous studies have reported that circulating angiogenic biomarkers have a very high negative predictive value to rule out clinical disease among women with suspected preeclampsia. These blood-based biomarkers have provided a valuable tool to clinicians to accelerate the time to clinical diagnosis and minimize maternal adverse outcomes in women with preeclampsia. Angiogenic biomarkers have also been useful to elucidate the pathogenesis of related disorders of abnormal placentation such as intrauterine growth restriction, intrauterine fetal death, twin-to-twin transfusion syndrome, and fetal hydrops. In summary, the discovery and characterization of angiogenic proteins of placental origin have provided clinicians a noninvasive blood-based tool to monitor placental function and health and for early detection of disorders of placentation. Uncovering the mechanisms of altered angiogenic factors in preeclampsia and related disorders of placentation may provide insights into novel preventive and therapeutic options.
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HANSEN DN, SINDING M, PETERSEN A, CHRISTIANSEN OB, ULDBJERG N, PETERS MDA, FRØKJÆR JB, SØRENSEN A. T2* weighted placental MRI: A biomarker of placental dysfunction in small-for-gestational-age pregnancies. Am J Obstet Gynecol MFM 2022; 4:100578. [DOI: 10.1016/j.ajogmf.2022.100578] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/02/2021] [Revised: 01/12/2022] [Accepted: 01/27/2022] [Indexed: 11/27/2022]
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Yu Z, Zhou S, Tan Z, Lu G. Expression Level of IL-17 in Peripheral Blood of Patients with Late Pregnancy and Diagnosis of Maternal-Fetal Tolerance Based on Brain MRI Image Segmentation Algorithm. Pak J Med Sci 2021; 37:1553-1557. [PMID: 34712281 PMCID: PMC8520365 DOI: 10.12669/pjms.37.6-wit.4828] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 05/03/2021] [Revised: 06/06/2021] [Accepted: 07/03/2021] [Indexed: 11/23/2022] Open
Abstract
Objectives: To study the expression of IL-17 in peripheral blood and its effect on maternal-fetal tolerance in patients with eclampsia in late pregnancy using MRI image segmentation algorithm. Methods: Thirty-nine patients with severe preeclampsia and eclampsia with brain symptoms were examined by cranial MRI. Pregnant women with 32 weeks of pregnancy were selected to detect the percentage of Th17 and Treg cells in CD4 + T lymphocytes and the expression of cytokines IL-17 and IL-10 in peripheral blood. Results: MRI examination was normal in 26 cases, 9 cases showed reversible posterior encephalopathy syndrome, three cases were cerebral hemorrhage, and one case was intracranial cavernous sinus thrombosis. two. Compared with the mild preeclampsia group, the relative number of Thl7 cells increased and that of Treg cells decreased in the severe preeclampsia group (P>0.05). Conclusion: The major types of cerebrovascular diseases (CVD) in severe preeclampsia and eclampsia were reversible posterior encephalopathy syndrome and cerebral hemorrhage. It was speculated that the damage to the blood-brain barrier may play an important role in the pathogenesis. The balance of the number of Th17 cells/the number of Treg cells was more inclined to the Th17 cell-mediated pro-inflammatory state, Treg cell-mediated immune tolerance decreases, and it becomes more obvious with the worsening of the disease.
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Affiliation(s)
- Zenying Yu
- Zenying Yu, Bachelor's Degrees. Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, The Third People's Hospital of Linyi, Linyi 276023, China
| | - Shengyan Zhou
- Shengyan Zhou, Bachelor's Degrees. Department of Gynaecology and Obstetrics, Lanling County People's Hospital of Linyi, Linyi 277000, China
| | - Zhen Tan
- Zhen Tan, Master of Medicine. Department of Pathology, The Third People's Hospital of Linyi, Linyi 276023, China
| | - Guangmin Lu
- Guangmin Lu, Bachelor's Degrees. Department of Endocrinology and Metablism, The Third People's Hospital of Linyi, Linyi 276023, China
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Sinding M, Sørensen A, Hansen DN, Peters DA, Frøkjær JB, Petersen AC. T2* weighted placental MRI in relation to placental histology and birth weight. Placenta 2021; 114:52-55. [PMID: 34461455 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2021.07.304] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/16/2020] [Revised: 06/22/2021] [Accepted: 07/28/2021] [Indexed: 10/20/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION Placental dysfunction may be found among normal birth weight (BW) pregnancies, as indicated by abnormal histological findings in postnatal placental examination in some of these pregnancies. T2* weighted placental MRI provides non-invasive information on placental oxygenation and thereby placental function. The aim of this study was to investigate the correlation between placental T2*, BW and placental histology. METHODS A total of 63 pregnant women underwent T2* weighted placental MRI at 15-40 week's gestation and a standardized placental histological examination (PHE). Abnormal PHE was defined by vascular malperfusion according to the Amsterdam workshop consensus. The correlation between PHE, BW z-score and T2* z-score was analyzed by logistic regression. RESULTS Abnormal PHE was revealed in 28 pregnancies. Multiple logistic regression revealed a significant correlation between abnormal PHE and T2* z-score (OR = 0.34, p = 0.008), whereas BW z-score did not add significantly to the correlation of placental histology (OR = 0.52, p = 0.115). In BW z-score≥0, PHE was normal in 100% of pregnancies. In BW z-score ≤ -2, PHE was abnormal in 89% of pregnancies. In intermediate BW (z-score between -2 and 0), PPE was abnormal in 35% of pregnancies. In this intermediate group, placental T2* z-score was reduced (-1.52 ± 1.22 (mean SD)) when compared to normal PHE pregnancies (-0.28 ± 1.17), p = 0.006. DISCUSSION This study demonstrates a correlation between abnormal placental histology and low placental T2* value regardless of fetal size. This indicates that T2* provides information of placental function in vivo even when fetal size is normal. This finding highlights that fetal size alone is not a valid marker of placental dysfunction.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marianne Sinding
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University, Denmark Sdr. Skovvej 15, 9000 Aalborg, Denmark; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Aalborg University Hospital, Denmark Reberbansgade 15, 9000 Aalborg, Denmark.
| | - Anne Sørensen
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University, Denmark Sdr. Skovvej 15, 9000 Aalborg, Denmark; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Aalborg University Hospital, Denmark Reberbansgade 15, 9000 Aalborg, Denmark.
| | - Ditte N Hansen
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University, Denmark Sdr. Skovvej 15, 9000 Aalborg, Denmark; Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Aalborg University Hospital, Denmark Reberbansgade 15, 9000 Aalborg, Denmark.
| | - David A Peters
- Department of Clinical Engineering, Central Denmark Region, Aarhus, Denmark Nørrebrogade 44, 8000 Aarhus C, Denmark.
| | - Jens B Frøkjær
- Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University, Denmark Sdr. Skovvej 15, 9000 Aalborg, Denmark; Department of Radiology, Aalborg University Hospital, Denmark Hobrovej 18-22, 9100 Aalborg, Denmark.
| | - Astrid C Petersen
- Department of Pathology, Aalborg University Hospital, Denmark Reberbansgade 15, 9000 Aalborg, Denmark.
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Pietsch M, Ho A, Bardanzellu A, Zeidan AMA, Chappell LC, Hajnal JV, Rutherford M, Hutter J. APPLAUSE: Automatic Prediction of PLAcental health via U-net Segmentation and statistical Evaluation. Med Image Anal 2021; 72:102145. [PMID: 34229190 PMCID: PMC8350147 DOI: 10.1016/j.media.2021.102145] [Citation(s) in RCA: 8] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/23/2020] [Revised: 04/26/2021] [Accepted: 06/21/2021] [Indexed: 02/04/2023]
Abstract
PURPOSE Artificial-intelligence population-based automated quantification of placental maturation and health from a rapid functional Magnetic Resonance scan. The placenta plays a crucial role for any successful human pregnancy. Deviations from the normal dynamic maturation throughout gestation are closely linked to major pregnancy complications. Antenatal assessment in-vivo using T2* relaxometry has shown great promise to inform management and possible interventions but clinical translation is hampered by time consuming manual segmentation and analysis techniques based on comparison against normative curves over gestation. METHODS This study proposes a fully automatic pipeline to predict the biological age and health of the placenta based on a free-breathing rapid (sub-30 second) T2* scan in two steps: Automatic segmentation using a U-Net and a Gaussian process regression model to characterize placental maturation and health. These are trained and evaluated on 108 3T MRI placental data sets, the evaluation included 20 high-risk pregnancies diagnosed with pre-eclampsia and/or fetal growth restriction. An independent cohort imaged at 1.5 T is used to assess the generalization of the training and evaluation pipeline. RESULTS Across low- and high-risk groups, automatic segmentation performs worse than inter-rater performance (mean Dice coefficients of 0.58 and 0.68, respectively) but is sufficient for estimating placental mean T2* (0.986 Pearson Correlation Coefficient). The placental health prediction achieves an excellent ability to differentiate cases of placental insufficiency between 27 and 33 weeks. High abnormality scores correlate with low birth weight, premature birth and histopathological findings. Retrospective application on a different cohort imaged at 1.5 T illustrates the ability for direct clinical translation. CONCLUSION The presented automatic pipeline facilitates a fast, robust and reliable prediction of placental maturation. It yields human-interpretable and verifiable intermediate results and quantifies uncertainties on the cohort-level and for individual predictions. The proposed machine-learning pipeline runs in close to real-time and, deployed in clinical settings, has the potential to become a cornerstone of diagnosis and intervention of placental insufficiency. APPLAUSE generalizes to an independent cohort imaged at 1.5 T, demonstrating robustness to different operational and clinical environments.
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Affiliation(s)
- Maximilian Pietsch
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK; Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK.
| | - Alison Ho
- Department of Women and Children's Health, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Alessia Bardanzellu
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK; Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Aya Mutaz Ahmad Zeidan
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK; Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Lucy C Chappell
- Department of Women and Children's Health, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Joseph V Hajnal
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK; Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Mary Rutherford
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK; Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK
| | - Jana Hutter
- Centre for Medical Engineering, King's College London, London, UK; Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, UK
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Armistead B, Kadam L, Siegwald E, McCarthy FP, Kingdom JC, Kohan-Ghadr HR, Drewlo S. Induction of the PPARγ (Peroxisome Proliferator-Activated Receptor γ)-GCM1 (Glial Cell Missing 1) Syncytialization Axis Reduces sFLT1 (Soluble fms-Like Tyrosine Kinase 1) in the Preeclamptic Placenta. Hypertension 2021; 78:230-240. [PMID: 34024123 DOI: 10.1161/hypertensionaha.121.17267] [Citation(s) in RCA: 5] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.7] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/25/2022]
Abstract
[Figure: see text].
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Affiliation(s)
- Brooke Armistead
- From the Michigan State University, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, College of Human Medicine, Grand Rapids (B.A., H.-R.K.-G., S.D.)
| | - Leena Kadam
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Oregon Health and Science University, Portland (L.K.)
| | - Emily Siegwald
- Spectrum Health SHARE Biorepository and Office of Research and Education, Spectrum Health, Grand Rapids, MI (E.S.)
| | - Fergus P McCarthy
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Infant Research Centre, University College Cork, Ireland (F.P.M.)
| | - John C Kingdom
- Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Toronto, ON, Canada (J.C.K.).,Department of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Mount Sinai Hospital, Toronto, ON, Canada (J.C.K.)
| | - Hamid-Reza Kohan-Ghadr
- From the Michigan State University, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, College of Human Medicine, Grand Rapids (B.A., H.-R.K.-G., S.D.)
| | - Sascha Drewlo
- From the Michigan State University, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology and Reproductive Biology, College of Human Medicine, Grand Rapids (B.A., H.-R.K.-G., S.D.)
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Steinweg JK, Hui GTY, Pietsch M, Ho A, van Poppel MP, Lloyd D, Colford K, Simpson JM, Razavi R, Pushparajah K, Rutherford M, Hutter J. T2* placental MRI in pregnancies complicated with fetal congenital heart disease. Placenta 2021; 108:23-31. [PMID: 33798991 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2021.02.015] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/22/2020] [Revised: 02/05/2021] [Accepted: 02/25/2021] [Indexed: 11/28/2022]
Abstract
BACKGROUND Congenital heart disease (CHD) is one of the most important and common group of congenital malformations in humans. Concurrent development and close functional links between the fetal heart and placenta emphasise the importance of understanding placental function and its influence in pregnancy outcomes. The aim of this study was to evaluate placental oxygenation by relaxometry (T2*) to assess differences in placental phenotype and function in CHD. METHODS In this prospective cross-sectional observational study, 69 women with a fetus affected with CHD and 37 controls, whole placental T2* was acquired using a 1.5-Tesla MRI scanner. Gaussian Process Regression was used to assess differences in placental phenotype in CHD cohorts compared to our controls. RESULTS Placental T2* maps demonstrated significant differences in CHD compared to controls at equivalent gestational age. Mean T2* values over the entire placental volume were lowest compared to predicted normal in right sided obstructive lesions (RSOL) (Z-Score 2.30). This cohort also showed highest lacunarity indices (Z-score -1.7), as a marker of lobule size. Distribution patterns of T2* values over the entire placental volume were positively skewed in RSOL (Z-score -4.69) and suspected, not confirmed coarctation of the aorta (CoA-) (Z-score -3.83). Deviations were also reflected in positive kurtosis in RSOL (Z-score -3.47) and CoA- (Z-score -2.86). CONCLUSION Placental structure and function appear to deviate from normal development in pregnancies with fetal CHD. Specific patterns of altered placental function assessed by T2* deliver crucial complementary information to antenatal assessments in the presence of fetal CHD.
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Affiliation(s)
- Johannes K Steinweg
- Department of Cardiovascular Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Science, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.
| | - Grace Tin Yan Hui
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Maximilian Pietsch
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Science, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Alison Ho
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Milou Pm van Poppel
- Department of Cardiovascular Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Science, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - David Lloyd
- Department of Cardiovascular Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Science, King's College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Congenital Heart Disease, Evelina Children's Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Kathleen Colford
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - John M Simpson
- Department of Cardiovascular Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Science, King's College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Congenital Heart Disease, Evelina Children's Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Reza Razavi
- Department of Cardiovascular Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Science, King's College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Congenital Heart Disease, Evelina Children's Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Kuberan Pushparajah
- Department of Cardiovascular Imaging, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Science, King's College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Congenital Heart Disease, Evelina Children's Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Mary Rutherford
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Jana Hutter
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom; Department of Biomedical Engineering, School of Biomedical Engineering & Imaging Science, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
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Ho A, Hutter J, Slator P, Jackson L, Seed PT, Mccabe L, Al-Adnani M, Marnerides A, George S, Story L, Hajnal JV, Rutherford M, Chappell LC. Placental magnetic resonance imaging in chronic hypertension: A case-control study. Placenta 2021; 104:138-145. [PMID: 33341490 PMCID: PMC7921773 DOI: 10.1016/j.placenta.2020.12.006] [Citation(s) in RCA: 7] [Impact Index Per Article: 2.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Submit a Manuscript] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 07/20/2020] [Revised: 11/28/2020] [Accepted: 12/09/2020] [Indexed: 11/21/2022]
Abstract
INTRODUCTION We aimed to explore the use of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) in vivo as a tool to elucidate the placental phenotype in women with chronic hypertension. METHODS In case-control study, women with chronic hypertension and those with uncomplicated pregnancies were imaged using either a 3T Achieva or 1.5T Ingenia scanner. T2-weighted images, diffusion weighted and T1/T2* relaxometry data was acquired. Placental T2*, T1 and apparent diffusion coefficient (ADC) maps were calculated. RESULTS 129 women (43 with chronic hypertension and 86 uncomplicated pregnancies) were imaged at a median of 27.7 weeks' gestation (interquartile range (IQR) 23.9-32.1) and 28.9 (IQR 26.1-32.9) respectively. Visual analysis of T2-weighted imaging demonstrated placentae to be either appropriate for gestation or to have advanced lobulation in women with chronic hypertension, resulting in a greater range of placental mean T2* values for a given gestation, compared to gestation-matched controls. Both skew and kurtosis (derived from histograms of T2* values across the whole placenta) increased with advancing gestational age at imaging in healthy pregnancies; women with chronic hypertension had values overlapping those in the control group range. Upon visual assessment, the mean ADC declined in the third trimester, with a corresponding decline in placental mean T2* values and showed an overlap of values between women with chronic hypertension and the control group. DISCUSSION A combined placental MR examination including T2 weighted imaging, T2*, T1 mapping and diffusion imaging demonstrates varying placental phenotypes in a cohort of women with chronic hypertension, showing overlap with the control group.
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Affiliation(s)
- Alison Ho
- Department of Women and Children's Health, School of Life Course Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom.
| | - Jana Hutter
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom; Biomedical Engineering Department, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Paddy Slator
- Centre for Medical Image Computing and Department of Computer Science, University College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Laurence Jackson
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom; Biomedical Engineering Department, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Paul T Seed
- Department of Women and Children's Health, School of Life Course Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Laura Mccabe
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Mudher Al-Adnani
- Department of Cellular Pathology, Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Andreas Marnerides
- Department of Cellular Pathology, Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Simi George
- Department of Cellular Pathology, Guy's and St Thomas' Hospital, London, United Kingdom
| | - Lisa Story
- Department of Women and Children's Health, School of Life Course Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Joseph V Hajnal
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom; Biomedical Engineering Department, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Mary Rutherford
- Centre for the Developing Brain, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
| | - Lucy C Chappell
- Department of Women and Children's Health, School of Life Course Sciences, King's College London, London, United Kingdom
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Sørensen A, Sinding M. Preeclamptic Placenta: New Insights Using Placental Magnetic Resonance Imaging. Hypertension 2020; 75:1412-1413. [PMID: 32401645 DOI: 10.1161/hypertensionaha.120.14855] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [What about the content of this article? (0)] [Affiliation(s)] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/16/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Anne Sørensen
- From the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Aalborg University Hospital, Denmark (A.S., M.S.).,Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University, Denmark (A.S., M.S.)
| | - Marianne Sinding
- From the Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Aalborg University Hospital, Denmark (A.S., M.S.).,Department of Clinical Medicine, Aalborg University, Denmark (A.S., M.S.)
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