SonoKids OB

A 44-year-old nulliparous woman was transferred to a tertiary obstetric hospital for investigation of acute onset abdominal pain. She was at gestation of 32 weeks and 2 days with a history of previous laparoscopic fundal myomectomy. An initial bedside ultrasound demonstrated oligohydramnios. Following an episode of increased pain early the following morning, a formal ultrasound diagnosed a uterine rupture with the fetal arm extending through a uterine rent. An uncomplicated classical caesarean section was performed and the neonate was delivered in good condition but with a bruised and oedematous right arm...

Background. Retained products of conception is an important diagnosis to consider in patients presenting with postpartum complaints. Bedside ultrasound is a rapid, accurate, noninvasive modality to evaluate these patients. Objective. To report an atypical case of retained products of conception diagnosed with bedside ultrasound in the emergency department. Case Report. A 27-year-old female who was 1-month postpartum presented with vaginal bleeding, pelvic pain, and no fever. At the time of initial H&P, bedside ultrasound revealed echogenic material within the endometrial cavity with blood flow seen by color Doppler consistent with retained products of conception...

BACKGROUND: Amniotic band sequence (ABS) is a rare disorder that can result in a wide spectrum of congenital craniofacial, limb, trunk, and viscera deformities. One of the more rare manifestations of ABS is intrauterine fetal decapitation. CASE REPORT: This case report presents the ultrasonographic diagnosis of first-trimester intrauterine fetal demise resulting from decapitation secondary to amniotic band sequence. WHY SHOULD AN EMERGENCY PHYSICIAN BE AWARE OF THIS?: This case report presents a rare and atypical presentation of intrauterine demise valuable for an emergency physician to recognize while performing or reviewing pelvic ultrasounds...

OBJECTIVE: Hemorrhagic shock is a relatively common occurrence in the postpartum period. In our hospital, we performed abdominal ultrasonography using the focused assessment with sonography for obstetrics (FASO) technique (a modified version of FAST). The aim of the present study was to determine the reference values for the ultrasonographic findings to establish the criteria for the diagnosis of a postpartum hemorrhage and severe shock using the FASO. METHODS: The present prospective cohort study included all postpartum women who vaginally delivered singleton infants...

OBJECTIVE: The objective was to determine if the need for transvaginal ultrasonographic examination can be decreased by the addition of the transabdominal high-frequency, 12-4-MHz linear transducer after a failed examination with the 6-2-mHz curvilinear transducer when evaluating for an intrauterine pregnancy (IUP). METHODS: This is a prospective pilot study of women in their first trimester of pregnancy presenting to the emergency department with abdominal pain and/or vaginal bleeding...

BACKGROUND: Heterotopic pregnancy is a condition in which intra- and extrauterine pregnancies occur at the same time. Spontaneous heterotopic pregnancy is a rare event, with incidences ranging from 1 in 30,000 pregnancies to as high as 1 in 6 pregnancies assisted by reproductive technology. CASE REPORT: A 34-year-old woman presented with a 10-week history of amenorrhea, pelvic pain, and generally feeling unwell. Ultrasonography revealed a 10-week intrauterine viable pregnancy and free fluid in the abdominal cavity...

AIM: To determine the applicability of pocket ultrasound as a complementary method for clinical evaluation during the first trimester of pregnancy. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A prospective cross-sectional study was conducted with 86 pregnant women attended in an emergency. The same operator performed the first examination with pocket device Vscan (General Electric, Vingmed Ultrasound, Horten, Norway) and then repeated the exam using a traditional handset high resolution Voluson 730 Expert (General Electric Healthcare Ultrasound, Milwaukee, WI, USA)...

Often overlooked during routine ultrasound evaluation of a normal pregnancy, the placenta forms the biologic interface between the mother and fetus and is critical to fetal growth and development. Malformations in development, positioning, and vascularity can have profound implications for both maternal and fetal well-being. As such, a judicious inspection of the placenta is warranted as an integral part of every screening or emergent prenatal ultrasound. Herein, we present a pictorial review of a variety of placental pathologic conditions including abnormalities in positioning, adherence, vascularity, and hemorrhage as well as potential peri-placental masses and gestational trophoblastic disease, all of which are readily encountered in a busy emergency radiology practice...

Diagnosis of adnexal torsion can be difficult, especially during pregnancy. Delay in diagnosis can lead to necrosis and loss of the affected ovary compromising the reproductive capacity, especially in young women. A 22-year-old primigravida presented to the emergency room at 10 weeks of gestation with acute onset left iliac fossa pain. Ultrasound examination showed a live intra-uterine gestation of 10 weeks, enlarged and edematous left ovary with a clear cyst of 76 mm × 63 mm with flow to the ovary. She underwent emergency surgery with a provisional diagnosis of torsion of left adnexa...

BACKGROUND: For patients with early intrauterine pregnancy (IUP), the sonographic signs of the gestation may be below the resolution of transabdominal ultrasound (TAU); however, it may be identified by transvaginal ultrasound (TVU). We sought to determine how often TVU performed in the emergency department (ED) reveals a viable IUP after a nondiagnostic ED TAU and the impact of ED TVU on patient length of stay (LOS). METHODS: This was a retrospective cohort study of women presenting to our ED with complications of early pregnancy from January 1, 2007 to February 28, 2009 in a single urban adult ED...

First trimester ultrasound is commonly performed to establish dates or evaluate early pregnancy complications. With improvement in ultrasound technology, visualization of fetal structures has improved. While the emergent evaluation does not typically focus on detailed fetal anatomic evaluation (since this is typically performed at 18-20 weeks), various fetal structural abnormalities can now be visualized, especially during the late first trimester and early second trimester. We present a pictorial review of potential pitfalls encountered in early obstetric ultrasound with an emphasis on fetal structural abnormalities as well as normal fetal anatomy that can be confused with developmental abnormalities...

INTRODUCTION: Despite the major advances made in the diagnosis and management of ectopic pregnancies in the last two decades, an accurate diagnosis can sometimes still be quite challenging, since it relies on the combination of ultrasound findings and serial serum beta-human chorionic gonadotrophin (β-hCG) measurements. CASE PRESENTATION: This paper describes the case of a 36-year-old woman of Caucasian origin who was admitted to the emergency department of our clinic with clinical symptoms of hemorrhagic shock in combination with two negative pregnancy tests done by her at home and a negative urine test which was performed on her admission to the hospital...

BACKGROUND: Ovarian ectopic pregnancy is rare, with an incidence of 1/7,000 to 1/40,000. Only a few of them progress to full term and survive. Most of them rupture in the first trimester and require emergency surgical intervention. CASE: An African American woman at 38 4/7 weeks' gestation presented to labor thd delivery with decreased smaal movement. Fetal presentation was vertex by ultrasound, which failed to detect ectopic pregnancy. The patient underwent cesarean section for nonreassuring fetal status...

OBJECTIVES: We compared emergency physician-performed pelvic ultrasonography (EPPU) with radiology department-performed pelvic ultrasonography (RPPU) in emergency department (ED) female patients requiring pelvic ultrasonography and their outcomes in relation to ED length of stay, ED readmission, and alternative diagnosis, within a 14-day follow-up period. METHODS: This was a prospective, observational study of female patients of reproductive age who required either an EPPU or RPPU for their ED evaluation...

OBJECTIVE: The identification of ectopic pregnancy is the primary concern for pregnant patients with an indeterminate ultrasound (an empty uterus or gestational sac). The absence of free fluid and adnexal masses by ultrasound combined with the absence of ectopic risk factors are used to place women in a "low-risk" category. We believe that women in a "low-risk" category with a β-human chorionic gonadotropin (β-hCG) below 3,000 mIU/mL can be discharged with only an emergency department (ED) ultrasound, provided there is 48 to 72 hours obstetric follow-up...

INTRODUCTION: The incidence of bilateral tubal pregnancy is rising due to the increase of pelvic inflammatory disease and assisted reproductive techniques. Because the clinical manifestations of bilateral tubal pregnancy are not specific, we often ignore inspection of the other fallopian tube when focusing on the lesions, which may cause misdiagnosis. CASE PRESENTATION: A 33-year-old Chinese woman presented with vaginal bleeding after menopause and with an abnormality found by transvaginal ultrasound scan for which she underwent laparoscopy and salpingectomy...

The aims of this study were to present and discuss ultrasound findings of prenatal fetal cholelithiasis in two cases with different etiology and evolution. Case 1: a pregnant woman from sub-Saharan Africa, suffering from Lyme disease, was treated with ceftriaxone sodium. Six weeks later, biliary sludge associated with polyhydramnios was detected in the fetus and the fetal growth percentile was 14. Emergency caesarean was performed at 36 weeks of gestation due to fetal distress. Biliary sludge persists in the two-and-a-half-year-old child...

No abstract text is available yet for this article.

Vaginal bleeding in early pregnancy is a common emergency department complaint. Point-of-care ultrasound is a useful tool to evaluate for intrauterine ectopic pregnancy. Emergency physicians performing these studies need to be cognizant of artifacts produced by ultrasound technology, as they can lead to misdiagnosis. We present two cases where mirror-image artifacts initially led to a concern for heterotopic pregnancies but were excluded on further imaging.

INTRODUCTION: Late obstetric emergencies are time critical presentations in the emergency department. Evaluation to ensure the safety of mother and child includes rapid assessment of fetal viability, fetal heart rate (FHR), fetal lie, and estimated gestational age (EGA). Point-of-care (POC) obstetric ultrasound (OBUS) offers the advantage of being able to provide all these measurements. We studied the impact of POC OBUS training on emergency physician (EP) confidence, knowledge, and OBUS skill performance on a live model...