title: Cord blood unit bankability can be predicted by prenatal sonographic parameters.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To identify possible sonographic prenatal parameters and postnatal parameters in order to obtain more bankable cord blood units (CBUs) containing a high number of primitive progenitor cells, allowing CBUs to be used as a source of haematopoietic progenitors for clinical transplantation.
  
  
  METHODS
  Prospective study undertaken in the Department of Gynaecology, Obstetrics and Reproductive Science, Second University of Naples, Italy. In total, 219 unrelated CBU donors were enrolled. Ultrasound parameters (biparietal diameter, head circumference, abdominal circumference, femur length, estimation of fetal weight, umbilical artery pulsatility index), collected at hospital admission, together with birth weight and placental weight, were correlated with bankable CBU parameters (CBU volume, total nucleated cell count, CD34+ cell count).
  
  
  RESULTS
  Femur length and abdominal circumference correlated positively with bankable CBUs. Receiver operating curve analysis showed that these parameters can identify bankable CBUs.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  This is the first prospective study to show the relationship between ultrasonographic fetal parameters at term and the possibility of obtaining high-quality CBUs. As such, cord blood banking could be improved worldwide by performing low-cost ultrasonographic scans.
authors: Department of the Woman, the Child and General and Specialized Surgery, Second University of Naples, Naples, Italy.
authors: L
authors: L
authors: Cobellis
authors: M A
authors: MA
authors: Castaldi
authors: E
authors: E
authors: Trabucco
authors: G
authors: G
authors: Imparato
authors: F
authors: F
authors: Perricone
authors: V
authors: V
authors: Frega
authors: G
authors: G
authors: Signoriello
authors: N
authors: N
authors: Colacurci
mesh_terms: D001800:Blood Specimen Collection / Q000379:methods; D005260:Female; D005312:Fetal Blood; D006801:Humans; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D011446:Prospective Studies; D014015:Tissue Banks; D016216:Ultrasonography, Prenatal
keywords: CD34+ cells; Cord blood unit bankability; Sonographic scan; Unrelated cord blood banking