Sonographic Assessment of Cervical Length in Placenta Previa Compared With Normal Pregnancy During The Early Third Trimester.

Abstract

Background: Placenta previa is a significant obstetric disorder linked to preterm delivery and antepartum hemorrhage. The importance of cervical shortening in early third trimester has not been adequately proven, also there is little evidence of early third-trimester monitoring using transabdominal sonography (TAS) at 28-32 weeks of gestation.

Purpose: To assess the cervical length in the placenta previa and normal pregnancy group at 28-32 and the prevalence of a short cervix (≤25 mm) in placenta previa with the use of TAS.

Methods: The study was a comparative cross-sectional study conducted over 6 months in the Radiology departments of tertiary hospitals in Rawalpindi. The 70 pregnant women (35 with placenta previa; 35 with normal pregnancy) were sampled. TAS used in measuring cervical length measured the internal to external os in the sagittal plane of measurement, and these measurements were in millimeters.

Results: The mean cervical length was significantly lower in the placenta previa group than in the normal pregnancy group (24.37 ± 5.34 mm vs. 34.46 ± 4.07 mm; p < 0.001). Short cervix (≤25 mm) was observed in 51.4% of placenta previa cases and in none of the normal pregnancies (p < 0.001).

Conclusion: These findings suggest an association between placenta previa and cervical shortening and may justify closer clinical surveillance in the early third trimester.