태아의 두개골내 이상 및 복강내 이상 진단을 위한 태아자기공명영상의 유용성

Abstract

Objective: Fetal MRI has provided detailed and reproducible fetal anatomy, especially in central nervous system and abdomen. This study was performed to evaluate the usefulness of fetal MRI for the evaluation of the fetal intracranial and intraabdominal abnormalities.

Methods: We retrospectively reviewed 57 cases in which fetal MRI were taken from January, 2000 to November, 2005 to make more accurate diagnosis and to detect more fetal abnormalities following abnormal prenatal ultrasonographic findings in intracranial and intraabdominal organ. Final diagnosis was made by postnatal pathology, postnatal MRI and other modalities (such as pathology, MRI). A 1.5-Tesla superconductive MR imaging unit was used to obtain half-Fourier acquisition single-shot turbo spin images.

Results: Of the 57 fetuses, intracranial abnormalities were found in 35 fetuses, intraabdominal abnormalities in 22 fetuses. There were 8 cases of different diagnosis between fetal MRI and ultrasonography. In that cases, fetal MRI provided more exact diagnosis than ultrasonography (7 VS 0). Four fetuses with intracranial abnormalities on ultrasonography were diagnosed to be normal on fetal MRI and in postnatal diagnosis.

Conclusion: We suggest that fetal MRI is more useful than ultrasonography for the evaluation of intracranial and intraabdominal abnormalities in some instances. For the prenatal counseling and postnatal treatment planning, fetal MRI can be informative when prenatal ultrasonography is inadequate and doubtful.