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Updated: May 22, 2026

Fetal Echocardiography and Pulsed-wave Doppler Ultrasound in a Rabbit Model of Intrauterine Growth Restriction
Published on: June 29, 2013
Left versus right intra-abdominal umbilical arteries: comparison of their Doppler waveforms
Susan Janeczek1, Roberta Karlman, William MacMillan
1Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Department of Obstetrics, Gynecology, and Reproductive Sciences, University of Medicine and Dentistry of New Jersey-Robert Wood Johnson Medical School, New Brunswick, NJ 08901-1977, USA. janeczsu@umdnj.edu
Objectives:
The purpose of this study was to compare Doppler velocimetric indices between the left and right intra-abdominal umbilical arteries in normally grown and growth-restricted fetuses.
Methods:
In this cross-sectional study, Doppler indices of the intra-abdominal segment of the left and right umbilical arteries were measured lateral to the fetal bladder. Measurements, including the systolic to diastolic ratio and pulsatility index, were obtained from both anatomic locations. The Student t test was used to make comparisons.
Results:
Differences between left and right Doppler indices were noted in 98% of patients, and these differences were greater than 20% in at least one-third. Overall, the left umbilical artery had a higher systolic to diastolic ratio (P = .025) and pulsatility index (P = .007) than the right umbilical artery.
Conclusions:
The laterality of the umbilical artery, whether on the left or right side of the fetus, influences important Doppler blood flow parameters.
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