OBJECTIVE: To establish reference ranges of the fetal adrenal gland (AG) and fetal zone (FZ) volumes using three-dimensional ultrasound (3DUS). METHODS: We performed a prospective cross-sectional study with 204 normal singleton pregnancies between 24 and 37 + 6 weeks of gestation. The fetal AG and FZ volumes were obtained using the virtual organ computer-aided analysis method with a 30° rotation. To establish reference ranges as the function of gestational age (GA), quantile regression was performed with the adjusted coefficient of determination (R2). Intra- and inter-observer repeatability was performed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). RESULTS: The mean results of fetal AG and FZ values were 0.42 cm3 (0.04-1.22) and 0.10 cm3 (0.02-0.47), respectively. The best-fit quantile regression models for fetal AG and FZ volumes as the function of GA were in first-degree models: AG = -0.937 + 0.041 × GA (R2 = 0.124) and FZ = -0.201 + 0.009 × GA (R2 = 0.127), respectively. We observed good intra-observer repeatability of fetal AG and FZ volumes, with an ICC of 0.996 and 0.989, respectively. We also observed good inter-observer repeatability, with an ICC of 0.972 and 0.966 for AG and FZ, respectively. CONCLUSION: The reference ranges of AG and FZ volumes using 3DUS between 24 and 37 + 6 weeks of gestation were established and exhibited good repeatability.
OBJECTIVE: To establish reference ranges of the fetal adrenal gland (AG) and fetal zone (FZ) volumes using three-dimensional ultrasound (3DUS). METHODS: We performed a prospective cross-sectional study with 204 normal singleton pregnancies between 24 and 37 + 6 weeks of gestation. The fetal AG and FZ volumes were obtained using the virtual organ computer-aided analysis method with a 30° rotation. To establish reference ranges as the function of gestational age (GA), quantile regression was performed with the adjusted coefficient of determination (R2). Intra- and inter-observer repeatability was performed using the intraclass correlation coefficient (ICC). RESULTS: The mean results of fetal AG and FZ values were 0.42 cm3 (0.04-1.22) and 0.10 cm3 (0.02-0.47), respectively. The best-fit quantile regression models for fetal AG and FZ volumes as the function of GA were in first-degree models: AG = -0.937 + 0.041 × GA (R2 = 0.124) and FZ = -0.201 + 0.009 × GA (R2 = 0.127), respectively. We observed good intra-observer repeatability of fetal AG and FZ volumes, with an ICC of 0.996 and 0.989, respectively. We also observed good inter-observer repeatability, with an ICC of 0.972 and 0.966 for AG and FZ, respectively. CONCLUSION: The reference ranges of AG and FZ volumes using 3DUS between 24 and 37 + 6 weeks of gestation were established and exhibited good repeatability.
Keywords:
Fetal adrenal gland; organ volume; three-dimensional ultrasound
Authors: Harshini Katugampola; Peter J King; Sumana Chatterjee; Muriel Meso; Andrew J Duncan; John C Achermann; Leo Guasti; Lea Ghataore; Norman F Taylor; Rebecca Allen; Shemoon Marlene; Joseph Aquilina; Ali Abbara; Channa N Jaysena; Waljit S Dhillo; Leo Dunkel; Ulla Sankilampi; Helen L Storr Journal: J Clin Endocrinol Metab Date: 2017-09-01 Impact factor: 5.958