Risk Assessment at 11-14-Week Antenatal Visit: A Tertiary Referral Center Experience from South India

Present study carried out in a tertiary referral hospital in South India attempts to determine the predictive value of integrated screening at 11-14-week antenatal visit.

To determine the detection rate of fetal abnormalities at 11-14 weeks and also to predict the placental dysfunction disorders based on early integrated evaluation.

Integrated screening performed on 440 women between 11 and 14 weeks, including detailed maternal history [medical history, bad obstetric history (BOH)], body mass index (BMI), mean arterial pressure (MAP), detailed ultrasound and maternal serum biochemistry as part of combined first-trimester screening for aneuploidy.

There were two proven Down's syndrome foetuses; both detected with combined screening test. There were 12 fetuses with major anomalies, out of whom 7 (58.3%) detected in 11-14-week scan. Among 440, 114 pregnancies (25.9%) developed complications in pregnancy, including 33 (7.5%) gestational hypertension, 8 (1.8%) pre-eclampsia, 41 (9.38%) SGA, 13 (2.9%) abortions, 22 (5%) indicated and 9 (2.04%) spontaneous preterm deliveries, 38 (8.63%) GDM and 3 (0.6%) stillbirth/IUD. Among the risk factors, age >35 years, BMI >23 kg/m², BOH, MAP >105 mmHg and PAPP-A <0.5 MoM correlated well with adverse outcome. Using early integrated screening, 78.9% of obstetric complications could be predicted although 306 (69.5%) were labeled high risk, among whom 90 (29.4%) developed adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Majority of fetal abnormalities can be detected, and majority adverse pregnancy outcomes can be predicted at 11-14-week antenatal visit, although this study shows high screen positivity and low specificity in a tertiary referral unit.