Assessment of the Cervix in Pregnant Women Using Shear Wave Elastography: A Feasibility Study

Marie Muller; Dora Aït-Belkacem; Mahdieh Hessabi; Jean-Luc Gennisson; Gilles Grangé; François Goffinet; Edouard Lecarpentier; Dominique Cabrol; Mickaël Tanter; Vassilis Tsatsaris

doi:10.1016/j.ultrasmedbio.2015.06.020

Assessment of the Cervix in Pregnant Women Using Shear Wave Elastography: A Feasibility Study

Ultrasound Med Biol. 2015 Nov;41(11):2789-97. doi: 10.1016/j.ultrasmedbio.2015.06.020. Epub 2015 Aug 14.

Affiliations

¹ Department of Mechanical and Aerospace Engineering, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, USA. Electronic address: mmuller2@ncsu.edu.
² Institut Langevin, ESPCI ParisTech, CNRS UMR7587, Inserm U979, Université Paris VII, Paris, France.
³ Maternité Port-Royal, Hôpital Cochin, AP-HP, DHU Risks and Pregnancy, Paris-Descartes University, Paris, France.
⁴ Maternité Port-Royal, Hôpital Cochin, AP-HP, DHU Risks and Pregnancy, Paris-Descartes University, Paris, France; Premup Foundation, Paris, France.
⁵ Maternité Port-Royal, Hôpital Cochin, AP-HP, DHU Risks and Pregnancy, Paris-Descartes University, Paris, France; Premup Foundation, Paris, France; Centre for Clinical Investigation, CIC Cochin-Necker, Paris, France.

PMID: 26278635
DOI: 10.1016/j.ultrasmedbio.2015.06.020

Abstract

The quantitative assessment of the cervix is crucial for the estimation of pre-term delivery risk and the prediction of the success of labor induction. We conducted a cross-sectional study using shear wave elastography based on the supersonic shear imaging technique. The shear wave speed (SWS) of the lower anterior part of the cervix was quantified over an 8-mm region of interest in 157 pregnant women. Cervical SWS is slightly but significantly reduced in patients diagnosed with pre-term labor and in patients who actually delivered pre-term.

Keywords: Cervical modifications; In vivo; Pre-term delivery risk assessment; Pregnancy; Shear wave elastography; Shear wave speed.

Publication types

Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

Adult
Cervix Uteri / diagnostic imaging*
Cross-Sectional Studies
Elasticity Imaging Techniques*
Feasibility Studies
Female
Humans
Labor, Obstetric
Pregnancy