title: Three- and four-dimensional ultrasound in fetal echocardiography: an up-to-date overview.
abstract: Congenital heart diseases (CHD) are the most commonly overlooked lesions in prenatal screening programs. Real-time two-dimensional ultrasound (2DUS) is the conventionally used tool for fetal echocardiography. Although continuous improvements in the hardware and post-processing software have resulted in a good image quality even in late first trimester, 2DUS still has its limitations. Four-dimensional ultrasound with spatiotemporal image correlation (STIC) is an automated volume acquisition, recording a single three-dimensional (3D) volume throughout a complete cardiac cycle, which results in a four-dimensional (4D) volume. STIC has the potential to increase the detection rate of CHD. The aim of this study is to provide a practical overview of the possibilities and (dis)advantages of STIC. A review of literature and evaluation of the current status and clinical value of 3D/4D ultrasound in prenatal screening and diagnosis of congenital heart disease are presented.
authors.affiliation: VU University Medical Center, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Amsterdam, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: B M E
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Adriaanse
authors.affiliation: Radboud University Medical Center, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Nijmegen, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: J M G
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: van Vugt
authors.affiliation: Leiden University Medical Center, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Leiden, The Netherlands.
authors.forename: M C
authors.initials: MC
authors.lastname: Haak
mesh_terms: D019561:Echocardiography, Four-Dimensional; D019560:Echocardiography, Three-Dimensional; D005260:Female; D005318:Fetal Heart / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006330:Heart Defects, Congenital / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging*; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D011261:Pregnancy Trimester, First; D016216:Ultrasonography, Prenatal / Q000379:methods*