Early amniocentesis: effect of removing a reduced volume of amniotic fluid on pregnancy outcome
✍ Scribed by S. Tharmaratnam; S. Sadek; E. K. Steele; M. A. Harper; F. J. Stewart; J. Nevin; N. C. Nevin; J. C. Dornan
- Publisher
- John Wiley and Sons
- Year
- 1998
- Tongue
- English
- Weight
- 128 KB
- Volume
- 18
- Category
- Article
- ISSN
- 0197-3851
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✦ Synopsis
In mid-trimester amniocentesis (MTA), 12-15 ml of amniotic fluid is aspirated for cytogenetic analysis. When a similar volume of amniotic fluid is removed by early amniocentesis (EA), it represents a significant proportion of the total amniotic fluid volume in the first trimester. The fluid depletion, which may persist for 7 to 10 days, is considered to impair development of fetal lungs and extremities and, possibly, contribute towards procedure-related congenital abnormalities and miscarriages. By only removing 7 ml of amniotic fluid, we have demonstrated a total miscarriage rate (3•8 per cent) comparable with previous large studies (Table V), a low incidence of respiratory difficulties at birth (2•7 per cent) and a low incidence of fixed flexion deformities (1•6 per cent), at the expense of a small increase in the incidence of culture failure (2•2 per cent). 1998 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.