Chang F M, Hsu K F, Ko H C, Yao B L, Chang C H, Yu C H, Chen H Y
Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, National Cheng Kung University Medical College and Hospital, Tainan, Taiwan.
Ultrasound Med Biol. 1997;23(3):381-9. doi: 10.1016/s0301-5629(96)00218-9.
The purposes of this study are to compare the reproducibility of two-dimensional ultrasound (2DUS) and three-dimensional ultrasound (3DUS) in the assessment of fetal liver volume (LV), and to test whether the fetal LV assessed by the traditional method with 2DUS is equal to that with 3DUS in normal pregnancy. If significantly different, we then try to calculate a new constant of fetal LV for the traditional equation from the LV values obtained with 3DUS. In total, 30 normal singleton fetuses with gestational ages ranging from 20 to 30 weeks were included for the reproducibility test and 55 cases ranging from 20 to 31 weeks gestation were enrolled for finding a new volume constant of LV. The results showed that 3DUS is superior to 2DUS in the reproducibility test of fetal LV assessment. Moreover, the LV assessed with the traditional 2DUS method (identified as LV_42) was significantly smaller than that measured with 3DUS (P < 0.001). If the traditional 2DUS equation is to be used, the multiplying factor in the equation for the calculation of LV should be modified to 0.55 (SE = 0.017, N = 55). With the new volume constant, the new derived LV with 2DUS (identified as LV 55) was not different from that with 3DUS (identified as LV_3D). In conclusion, we recommend that 3DUS, instead of 2DUS, should be used for reaching an accurate assessment of fetal LV. Otherwise, applying our new volume constant may be of help in detecting abnormal fetal liver growth when only 2DUS is available.
本研究的目的是比较二维超声（2DUS）和三维超声（3DUS）在评估胎儿肝脏体积（LV）方面的可重复性，并测试在正常妊娠中，用传统二维超声方法评估的胎儿LV是否与三维超声评估的结果相等。如果存在显著差异，我们将尝试根据三维超声获得的LV值为传统公式计算一个新的胎儿LV常数。共有30例孕龄在20至30周的正常单胎胎儿纳入可重复性测试，55例孕龄在20至31周的病例纳入以寻找LV的新体积常数。结果表明，在胎儿LV评估的可重复性测试中，三维超声优于二维超声。此外，用传统二维超声方法评估的LV（记为LV_42）明显小于三维超声测量的结果（P < 0.001）。如果要使用传统二维超声公式，计算LV的公式中的乘数应修改为0.55（标准误 = 0.017，N = 55）。使用新的体积常数后，二维超声得出的新LV（记为LV 55）与三维超声得出的结果（记为LV_3D）无差异。总之，我们建议使用三维超声而非二维超声来准确评估胎儿LV。否则，当只有二维超声可用时，应用我们的新体积常数可能有助于检测胎儿肝脏生长异常。
