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High prevalence of defects in Cesarean section scars at transvaginal ultrasound examination.

Vikhareva Osser, O LU ; Jokubkiene, Ligita LU and Valentin, Lil LU orcid (2009) In Ultrasound in obstetrics & gynecology : the official journal of the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology 34(1). p.90-97
Abstract
OBJECTIVES: To determine the ability to correctly identify Cesarean section scars, to estimate the prevalence of defective scars, and to determine the size and location of scar defects by transvaginal ultrasound imaging. METHODS: Two hundred and eighty-seven women underwent transvaginal ultrasound examination 6-9 months after delivery: 108 had undergone one Cesarean section, 43 had had two Cesarean sections, 11 had undergone at least three Cesarean sections, and 125 were primiparae who had delivered vaginally. The ultrasound examiner was blinded to the obstetric history until all scans had been evaluated. RESULTS: None of the 125 vaginally delivered women had a visible scar in the uterus, whereas all women who had undergone Cesarean... (More)
OBJECTIVES: To determine the ability to correctly identify Cesarean section scars, to estimate the prevalence of defective scars, and to determine the size and location of scar defects by transvaginal ultrasound imaging. METHODS: Two hundred and eighty-seven women underwent transvaginal ultrasound examination 6-9 months after delivery: 108 had undergone one Cesarean section, 43 had had two Cesarean sections, 11 had undergone at least three Cesarean sections, and 125 were primiparae who had delivered vaginally. The ultrasound examiner was blinded to the obstetric history until all scans had been evaluated. RESULTS: None of the 125 vaginally delivered women had a visible scar in the uterus, whereas all women who had undergone Cesarean section had at least one visible scar. Median myometrial thickness at the level of the isthmus was 11.6 mm in women who had only been delivered vaginally, and 8.3 mm, 6.7 mm and 4.7 mm in women who had undergone one, two and at least three Cesarean sections, respectively (P < 0.001). Scar defects were seen in 61% (66/108), 81% (35/43) and 100% (11/11) of the women who had undergone one, two and at least three Cesarean sections (P = 0.002); at least one defect was classified as large by the ultrasound examiner in 14% (15/108), 23% (10/43) and 45% (5/11) (P = 0.027), and at least one total defect was seen in 6% (7/108), 7% (3/43) and 18% (2/11) (P = 0.336). In women who had undergone one Cesarean section, the median distance between an intact scar and the internal cervical os was 4.6 (range, 0-19) mm, and that between a deficient scar and the internal cervical os was 0 (range, 0-26) mm (P < 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Cesarean section scars can be detected reliably by ultrasound imaging. Myometrial thickness at the level of the isthmus uteri decreases with the number of Cesarean sections and the frequency of large scar defects increases. Scars with defects are located lower in the uterus than intact scars. Copyright (c) 2009 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd. (Less)
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publishing date
type
Contribution to journal
publication status
published
subject
in
Ultrasound in obstetrics & gynecology : the official journal of the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology
volume
34
issue
1
pages
90 - 97
publisher
John Wiley & Sons Inc.
external identifiers
  • wos:000268217800017
  • pmid:19499514
  • scopus:67650273854
  • pmid:19499514
ISSN
1469-0705
DOI
10.1002/uog.6395
language
English
LU publication?
yes
id
a6bf00a1-e6dd-482f-9490-23b9f733981f (old id 1434459)
date added to LUP
2016-04-04 09:42:26
date last changed
2022-04-23 21:54:52
@article{a6bf00a1-e6dd-482f-9490-23b9f733981f,
  abstract     = {{OBJECTIVES: To determine the ability to correctly identify Cesarean section scars, to estimate the prevalence of defective scars, and to determine the size and location of scar defects by transvaginal ultrasound imaging. METHODS: Two hundred and eighty-seven women underwent transvaginal ultrasound examination 6-9 months after delivery: 108 had undergone one Cesarean section, 43 had had two Cesarean sections, 11 had undergone at least three Cesarean sections, and 125 were primiparae who had delivered vaginally. The ultrasound examiner was blinded to the obstetric history until all scans had been evaluated. RESULTS: None of the 125 vaginally delivered women had a visible scar in the uterus, whereas all women who had undergone Cesarean section had at least one visible scar. Median myometrial thickness at the level of the isthmus was 11.6 mm in women who had only been delivered vaginally, and 8.3 mm, 6.7 mm and 4.7 mm in women who had undergone one, two and at least three Cesarean sections, respectively (P &lt; 0.001). Scar defects were seen in 61% (66/108), 81% (35/43) and 100% (11/11) of the women who had undergone one, two and at least three Cesarean sections (P = 0.002); at least one defect was classified as large by the ultrasound examiner in 14% (15/108), 23% (10/43) and 45% (5/11) (P = 0.027), and at least one total defect was seen in 6% (7/108), 7% (3/43) and 18% (2/11) (P = 0.336). In women who had undergone one Cesarean section, the median distance between an intact scar and the internal cervical os was 4.6 (range, 0-19) mm, and that between a deficient scar and the internal cervical os was 0 (range, 0-26) mm (P &lt; 0.001). CONCLUSIONS: Cesarean section scars can be detected reliably by ultrasound imaging. Myometrial thickness at the level of the isthmus uteri decreases with the number of Cesarean sections and the frequency of large scar defects increases. Scars with defects are located lower in the uterus than intact scars. Copyright (c) 2009 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley &amp; Sons, Ltd.}},
  author       = {{Vikhareva Osser, O and Jokubkiene, Ligita and Valentin, Lil}},
  issn         = {{1469-0705}},
  language     = {{eng}},
  number       = {{1}},
  pages        = {{90--97}},
  publisher    = {{John Wiley & Sons Inc.}},
  series       = {{Ultrasound in obstetrics & gynecology : the official journal of the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology}},
  title        = {{High prevalence of defects in Cesarean section scars at transvaginal ultrasound examination.}},
  url          = {{http://dx.doi.org/10.1002/uog.6395}},
  doi          = {{10.1002/uog.6395}},
  volume       = {{34}},
  year         = {{2009}},
}