Journal of AdvancedMedical and Dental Sciences Research

Background: To evaluate the usefulness of the pulsatility index (PI) of the umbilical artery (UA) and that of the fetal middle cerebral artery (MCA), as well as the ratio of the MCA PI to the UA PI (C/U ratio), in the diagnosis of small-for-gestational-age (SGA) fetuses and in the prediction of adverse perinatal outcome. Materials & methods: A total of 50 pregnancies of 30-40 weeks gestation that had been diagnosed clinically as intrauterine growth retardation (IUGR) over a period of 1 year were enrolled. The UA PI and the MCA PI as well as the C/U ratio were calculated.P < 0.05 was considered significant. Results: A total of 50 pregnancies in the study were included. 15 showed abnormal UA PI. Among these, 13 were SGA and 12 had adverse perinatal outcome. In the cerebral-umbilical ratio, 20 (100%) fetuses were SGA and all had an adverse perinatal outcome. Conclusion: The C/U ratio is a better predictor of SGA fetuses and adverse perinatal outcome than the MCA PI or the UA PI used alone.