Ectopic pregnancy: duplex Doppler evaluation.

Of 398 patients in whom there was a clinical suspicion of ectopic pregnancy, 96 (24%) were found to have the condition. Of the 96, 70 underwent duplex Doppler imaging. A viable ectopic fetus was seen in 10 of 70 (14%), and an extrauterine sac without an identifiable fetus was seen in an additional 27, giving a sensitivity for imaging alone of 53%. Fetal heart activity was detected with Doppler in 13 (19%). High-velocity flow, which suggested the presence of an ectopic pregnancy, was detected in 38 of 70 (54%) patients (total preoperative sensitivity, 73%). In the 91 patients who did not have an ectopic pregnancy, duplex Doppler imaging of the intrauterine contents alone allowed an ectopic pregnancy to be excluded in 29 (32%) on the first examination and in a further 21 on the second scan (specificity, 55%). Nine vascular adnexal masses were falsely considered to be ectopic pregnancies (specificity, 90%). The positive predictive values were 47% for imaging alone and 85% for Doppler. The negative predictive values were 60% for imaging alone and 81% for Doppler.