ArticleUltrasound in obstetrics & gynecology : the official journal of the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology2021
Normal human brainstem development in vivo: a quantitative fetal MRI study.
Article in Ultrasound in obstetrics & gynecology : the official journal of the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 18 papers.
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18 citing papers in PubMed, 28 citations in OpenAlex.
- Brainstem size in extremely preterm infants: reference values and association with neurodevelopmental outcomes.Pediatric research · 2026Article
- Fetal Brain Abnormalities Following Laser Surgery for Twin-to-Twin Transfusion Syndrome: Imaging Patterns and Evolution.Prenatal diagnosis · 2026Article
- Fundamentals of fetal brain MRI: indications, technique, and normal anatomy.Pediatric radiology · 2026Review
- Super-resolution MRI-derived brainstem and cerebellar volumes in fetuses between 22 weeks and 32 weeks of gestation.Pediatric radiology · 2026Article
- Normal growth, sexual dimorphism, and lateral asymmetry of the fetal posterior fossa during the late second and third trimesters.Pediatric radiology · 2026Article
- Article
- Towards automated fetal brain biometry reporting for 3-dimensional T2-weighted 0.55-3T magnetic resonance imaging at 20-40 weeks gestational age range.Pediatric radiology · 2026Article
- Multimodal assessment of fetal head circumference and biparietal diameter: systematic differences between MRI and US measurements and development of an US-equivalent prediction regression model.Frontiers in radiology · 2026Article
- Feeding, Emotion, and the Brain Stem: The Interesting Case of the Mesencephalic Trigeminal Nucleus.Brain sciences · 2025Article
- The early alteration of brainstem and cerebellum, and their relationship with cerebral cortex: anQuantitative imaging in medicine and surgery · 2025Article
- Biometry and volumetry in multi-centric fetal brain magnetic resonance imaging: assessing the bias of super-resolution reconstruction.Pediatric radiology · 2025Article
- Maternal Prenatal Psychological Stress and Iron Levels in the Fetal Brain.Developmental psychobiology · 2025Article
- Cerebellar haemorrhage and atrophy in infants born extremely preterm with intraventricular haemorrhage.Developmental medicine and child neurology · 2025Article
- Standardised and structured reporting in fetal magnetic resonance imaging: recommendations from the Fetal Task Force of the European Society of Paediatric Radiology.Pediatric radiology · 2024Review
- Experience of early-life pain in premature infants is associated with atypical cerebellar development and later neurodevelopmental deficits.BMC medicine · 2023Article
- Does fetal growth restriction induce neuropathology within the developing brainstem?The Journal of physiology · 2023Review
- Quantification of Intracranial Structures Volume in Fetuses Using 3-D Volumetric MRI: Normal Values at 19 to 37 Weeks' Gestation.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2022Article
- Fetal Brain Biometric Measurements on 3D Super-Resolution Reconstructed T2-Weighted MRI: An Intra- and Inter-observer Agreement Study.Frontiers in pediatrics · 2021Article
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Authors and funding
10 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
objectivesTo characterize spatiotemporal growth differences of prenatal brainstem substructures and cerebellum, using linear biometry and planimetry on fetal magnetic resonance imaging (MRI).
methodsIn this retrospective study, we included fetuses with normal brain and a precise midsagittal T2-weighted brain MRI sequence obtained between May 2003 and April 2019. The cross-sectional area, rostrocaudal diameter and anteroposterior diameter of the midbrain, pons (basis pontis and pontine tegmentum), medulla oblongata and cerebellar vermis, as well as the transverse cerebellar diameter, were quantified by a single observer. The diameters were also assessed by a second observer to test inter-rater variability.
resultsWe included 161 fetuses with normal brain and a precise midsagittal MRI sequence, examined at a mean ± SD gestational age of 25.7 ± 5.4 (range, 14 + 0 to 39 + 2) weeks. All substructures of the fetal brainstem and the cerebellum could be measured consistently (mean ± SD interobserver intraclass correlation coefficient, 0.933 ± 0.065). We provide reference data for diameters and areas of the brainstem and cerebellum in the second and third trimesters. There was a significant quadratic relationship between vermian area and gestational age, and all other measured parameters showed a significant linear growth pattern within the observed period (P < 0.001). A significant change in the relative proportions of the brainstem substructures occurred between the beginning of the second trimester and the end of the third trimester, with an increase in the area of the pons (P < 0.001) and a decrease in that of the midbrain (P < 0.001), relative to the total brainstem area.
conclusionsThe substructures of the fetal brainstem follow a distinct spatiotemporal growth pattern, characterized by a relative increase in the pons and decrease in the midbrain, between 15 and 40 weeks of gestation. Caution is needed when interpreting fetal brainstem appearance during the early second trimester, as the brainstem proportions differ significantly from the adult morphology. The reference data provided herein should help to increase diagnostic accuracy in detecting disorders of defective hindbrain segmentation. © 2020 The Authors. Ultrasound in Obstetrics & Gynecology published by John Wiley & Sons Ltd on behalf of International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology.
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