Periventricular pseudocysts of noninfectious origin: Prenatal associated findings and prognostic factors

The purpose of this study was to establish prognostic factors in fetuses diagnosed with periventricular pseudocysts (PVPCs) without known congenital infection, between 28 and 37 weeks of gestation.

This retrospective study included cases of fetal PVPC from 2008 to 2018. PVPCs were classified according to location, number, extension, morphology, and size. Additional findings, MRI and genetic studies were recorded. Pregnancy outcome, postnatal, or postmortem results were obtained. Images from patients with normal (Group 1) and abnormal postnatal development (Group 2) were compared for analysis of factors predictive of outcome.

One-hundred and fifteen pseudocysts were observed in 59 patients. In 34 fetuses (57%), the PVPC was an isolated finding. Thirty-nine patients delivered live newborns, 27% opted for termination of pregnancy, and 4 patients were lost to follow-up. Eighty-four percent of the liveborns had normal development. When assessing for the influence of pseudocyst characteristics, a wide CSP, or large head circumference, neither of these affected the outcome. The presence of additional anomalies was the only positive predictor for abnormal development regradless of specific PVPC characteristics (P = .002).

In fetuses with PVPCs, the presence of additional anomalies was the only predictor for adverse postnatal outcome. No association between cystic characteristics and adverse outcome was observed.