MR imaging of the fetal musculoskeletal system

Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) appears to be increasingly used, in addition to standard ultrasonography for the diagnosis of abnormalities in utero. Previous studies have recently drawn attention to the technical refinement of MRI to visualize the fetal bones and muscles. Beyond commonly used T2-weighted MRI, echoplanar, thick-slab T2-weighted and dynamic sequences, and three-dimensional MRI techniques, are about to provide new imaging insights into the normal and the pathological musculoskeletal system of the fetus. This review emphasizes the potential significance of MRI in the visualization of the fetal musculoskeletal system. © 2012 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.     

Invasive assessment of fetal renal abnormalities: urinalysis,fetal blood sampling and biopsy

There are a number of potential biochemcial markers that may have some role in predicting renal function postnatally. These include urinary sodium, calcium and β2‒microglobulin. The latter may also be measured in fetal serum. However, the accuracy of these parameters at a point in time is far from perfect as urinary tract obstruction is a progressive disease which may be best defined by repeated observations throughout pregnancy. Copyright © 2001 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.