ArticleEClinicalMedicine2021
The prevalence of abnormal Doppler's of the umbilical artery in a low-risk pregnant population in South Africa.
Article in EClinicalMedicine, 2021. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. Cited by 12 papers.
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Who cites it
12 citing papers in PubMed, 21 citations in OpenAlex.
- Deep learning for carotid Doppler spectra classification.Medical & biological engineering & computing · 2026Article
- Placental insufficiency and markers of fetal growth are associated with longitudinal infant growth and body composition trajectories up to two years of age.Scientific reports · 2026Article
- Exploring Infant Size and Body Composition at 18 Months: An Ambidirectional Peri-Urban South African Cohort Study.Maternal & child nutrition · 2025Article
- Fetal Aortic and Umbilical Doppler Flow Velocity Waveforms in Pregnancy: The Concept of Aortoumbilical Column.Current cardiology reviews · 2024Review
- Implementation of continuous-wave Doppler ultrasound to detect the high-risk foetus in the low-risk mother: lessons from South Africa.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2023Article
- A feasibility study of the use of UmbiFlow™ to assess the impact of heat stress on fetoplacental blood flow in field studies.International journal of gynaecology and obstetrics: the official organ of the International Federation of Gynaecology and Obstetrics · 2023Observational
- Article
- Environmental heat stress on maternal physiology and fetal blood flow in pregnant subsistence farmers in The Gambia, west Africa: an observational cohort study.The Lancet. Planetary health · 2022Observational
- Middle cerebral arterial flow redistribution is an indicator for intrauterine fetal compromise in late pregnancy in low-resource settings: A prospective cohort study.BJOG : an international journal of obstetrics and gynaecology · 2022Article
- Preventing antenatal stillbirths: An innovative approach for primary health care.South African family practice : official journal of the South African Academy of Family Practice/Primary Care · 2022Article
- Identifying the High-Risk Fetus in the Low-Risk Mother Using Fetal Doppler Screening.Global health, science and practice · 2022Article
- Article
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Authors and funding
4 authors at 2 institutions in 1 country.
Funding
No grant is acknowledged in the PubMed record.
Abstract
backgroundThe assessment of fetal blood flow using Doppler waveform can be used to identify placental insufficiency, and hence is a tool to identify fetuses at risk of stillbirth due to fetal growth restriction (FGR). In South Africa the largest category of perinatal deaths is 'unexplained intrauterine death'. The majority of the mothers are clinically healthy women. This study was performed to determine the prevalence of abnormal umbilical resistance indices (abnormal RI) to see if screening a low-risk pregnant population is worthwhile.
methodsA descriptive study across 9 sites in 8 provinces of South Africa was performed to determine the prevalence of abnormal RI of the umbilical artery in women classified as having a low-risk pregnancy. The study was conducted from 1st September 2017- February 2020.The pregnant women classified were screened using a continuous wave Doppler ultrasound apparatus (Umbiflow™) between 28 and 34 weeks' gestation. Women with fetuses with an abnormal RI were referred to a high-risk clinic and were managed according to standard protocol. The outcomes of all the deliveries were recorded.
findingsUmbiflow™ screening of the umbilical artery was performed in 7088 women across nine sites; 919 (13·0%) fetuses had an abnormal RI. Absent end diastolic flow (AEDF) was found in 87 (1·2%) fetuses. The prevalence of small for gestational ages (SGA) babies was 23·1% in the normal RI group and was significantly higher in the abnormal RI group 32·1% (
interpretationThe prevalence of abnormal RI and AEDF in this screened low-risk population was about ten times higher than that previously recorded in high income countries. Continuous wave Doppler ultrasound screening detected previously undiagnosed growth restricted babies. The prevalence of AEDF warrants continuous wave Doppler ultrasound screening of the low-risk pregnant population in South Africa.
fundingThis study was funded by the South African Medical Research Council (SAMRC) and the Council for Scientific and Industrial Research (CSIR).
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