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Middle cerebral artery blood flow in normal and growth-retarded fetuses
1Department of Reproductive Biology, MacDonald Hospital for Women, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, Ohio.
Doppler ultrasonography of the middle cerebral artery was performed on 17 fetuses that were small for gestational age at the time of delivery. Results were compared with a group of 25 fetuses that had a normal weight for gestational age at the time of delivery. Despite a significant difference in fetal weight and systolic/diastolic ratio of the umbilical artery between the two groups, no difference was found in either the systolic/diastolic ratio or in the Pourcelot index of the middle cerebral artery. This may reflect a protective effect on the brain circulation in the small-for-gestational-age fetus.
Doppler ultrasonography of the middle cerebral artery was performed on 17 fetuses that were small for gestational age at the time of delivery. Results were compared with a group of 25 fetuses that had a normal weight for gestational age at the time of delivery. Despite a significant difference in fetal weight and systolic/diastolic ratio of the umbilical artery between the two groups, no difference was found in either the systolic/diastolic ratio or in the Pourcelot index of the middle cerebral artery. This may reflect a protective effect on the brain circulation in the small-for-gestational-age fetus.