Does a multiparameter approach combining hemodynamic and morphological assessments improve the prenatal differentiation of RFOF from CoA compared to traditional ratios?
A novel multiparameter echocardiographic approach combining hemodynamic and morphological assessments may help prenatally distinguish restricted foramen ovale flap from coarctation of the aorta, reducing false positive diagnoses.
What's already known about this topic? The established consensus indicates that RFOF can mimic the sonographic features of CoA prenatally by causing imbalances in traditional parameters of cardiac chamber dimensions and great vessel diameter ratios. However, reliable tools for prenatally distinguishing between these two conditions based on hemodynamic and left heart morphological characteristics remain unavailable. What does this study add? This study adds a new, multiparameter approach that combines hemynamic (RCO/LCO) and novel morphological (FOFd/LAd, Aortic Arch Angle, LIOA) assessments. This approach moves beyond the limitations of traditional ratios and provides clinicians with practical tools to reduce the false positive diagnosis of CoA in fetuses with RFOF.
Lin et al. (Thu,) studied this question.