Journal of Ultrasound in Medicine, Vol 11, Issue 3 75-79, Copyright © 1992 by American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine
The implications of sonographically identified cervical changes in patients not necessarily at risk for preterm birth
L. Riley, F. D. Frigoletto Jr and B. R. Benacerraf
Department of Obstetrics & Gynecology, Brigham & Women's Hospital, Harvard Medical School, Boston, MA.
Sonography of the cervix and lower uterine segment has been used in
evaluating pregnancies at risk for incompetent cervix and premature labor.
Shortened cervix (less than 3 cm) and open internal os with funneling of
the membranes into the endocervical canal are sonographic features
associated with premature delivery. We identified these sonographic signs
in a group of 31 asymptomatic women who were undergoing prenatal sonography
for multiple indications, not necessarily related to premature labor or
cervical incompetence. Nineteen patients (61%) in this heterogeneous
population had pregnancies complicated by preterm labor, clinical evidence
of incompetent cervix, or preterm birth. We conclude that the presence of
abnormal sonographic features of the cervix seen incidentally during
prenatal sonography on asymptomatic patients warrants close clinical
attention.
