ReviewReproductive health2018
Obstetric ultrasound use in low and middle income countries: a narrative review.
Review in Reproductive health, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 65 papers, 1 of them a synthesis that pooled it.
What it found
Each row is one number read from the abstract, on the scale the paper reported it, with its interval. Left of the dashed line favours the treatment, right favours the comparator. Under each row is the sentence it came from. New to these charts? A ten-minute tutorial.
The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
Neither the registry nor the abstract names a trial number. If this is a trial report, that itself is worth knowing.
Who cites it
65 citing papers in PubMed, 1 synthesis or guideline pooled it.
- Training in Ultrasound to Determine Gestational Age in Low- and Middle- Income Countries: A Systematic Review.Frontiers in global women's health · 2022Pooled it
- Cost estimation alongside a multi-regional, multi-country randomized trial of antenatal ultrasound in five low-and-middle-income countries.BMC public health · 2021Trial
- Article
- Factors associated with early obstetric ultrasound uptake at a tertiary hospital in Northern Uganda: a cross-sectional study.BMJ open · 2026Article
- The FemTech revolution: Unlocking the potential of new technology for optimizing pregnancy outcomes in low- and middle-income countries and remote areas.International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics · 2026Article
- Protocol for the Implementation of a Targeted Maternal and Newborn Service Delivery Bundle in Sierra Leone.Methods and protocols · 2026Article
- AI-based quality control was associated with improved fetal ultrasound image quality in low-resource settings: a real-world multicenter study from West China.BMC medicine · 2026Observational
- Approaches, barriers, and facilitators to and strategies for normalizing the provision of ultrasound scanning by midwives in the antenatal clinic.Reproductive health · 2026Article
- Power supply and ultrasound functionality in Malawi: findings from the 2019 harmonised health facility assessment.npj health systems · 2026Article
- Antenatal Ultrasound Utilization and Associated Factors Among Postpartum Women in Durame Town Public Health Institutions, Central Ethiopia: A Facility-Based Cross-Sectional Study.TheScientificWorldJournal · 2026Article
- Article
- Quality of first antenatal care visits and perinatal outcomes: Evidence from a cohort study in Ethiopia, Kenya, South Africa, and India.PLOS global public health · 2026Article
- Article
- Article
- Perceptions and practices in urban Burkina Faso: a qualitative study on gestational age estimation among health workers.International journal of qualitative studies on health and well-being · 2025Article
- Protocol for a prospective cohort study on pre-eclampsia risk prediction in Ghana, Kenya and South Africa.Reproductive health · 2025Article
- Evaluation of large-scale implementation of obstetric point of care ultrasound in eight counties in Kenya using RE-AIM framework.BMC health services research · 2025Article
- AI-enabled obstetric point-of-care ultrasound as an emerging technology in low- and middle-income countries: provider and health system perspectives.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2025Article
- Initiating a Fetal Cardiac Program from Scratch in Low- and Middle-Income Countries: Structure, Challenges, and Hopes for Solutions.Pediatric cardiology · 2025Review
- A survey of obstetric ultrasound uses and priorities for artificial intelligence-assisted obstetric ultrasound in low- and middle-income countries.Scientific reports · 2025Article
5 more citing papers are in PubMed but not listed here.
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
5 authors.
Funding
Abstract
introductionAlthough growing, evidence on the impact, access, utility, effectiveness, and cost-benefit of obstetric ultrasound in resource-constrained settings is still somewhat limited. Hence, questions around the purpose and the intended benefit as well as potential challenges across various domains must be carefully reviewed prior to implementation and scale-up of obstetric ultrasound technology in low-and middle-income countries (LMICs). MAIN BODY: This narrative review discusses these issues for those trying to implement or scale-up ultrasound technology in LMICs. Issues addressed in this review include health personnel capacity, maintenance, cost, overuse and misuse of ultrasound, miscommunication between the providers and patients, patient diagnosis and care management, health outcomes, patient perceptions and concerns about fetal sex determination.
conclusionAs cost of obstetric ultrasound becomes more affordable in LMICs, it is essential to assess the benefits, trade-offs and potential drawbacks of large-scale implementation. Additionally, there is a need to more clearly identify the capabilities and the limitations of ultrasound, particularly within the context of limited training of providers, to ensure that the purpose for which an ultrasound is intended is actually feasible. We found evidence of obstetric uses of ultrasound improving patient management. However, there was evidence that ultrasound use is not associated with reducing maternal, perinatal or neonatal mortality. Patients in various studies reported to have both positive and negative perceptions and experiences related to ultrasound and lastly, illegal use of ultrasound for determining fetal sex was raised as a concern.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.