Prenatal diagnosis and outcomes of cervical meningocele and myelomeningocele

Abstract

Prenatal diagnosis of myelomeningocele remains challenging for obstetricians, ultrasonographers, and radiologists, although the increased maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein level aids in the confirmative diagnosis. Fetal cervical myelomeningocele and meningocele are very rare and unique types of myelomeningocele. Prenatal diagnosis of cervical myelomeningocele and meningocele should include the differential diagnosis and association of many intracranial and spino-skeletal pathogenetic variants and genetic diseases, including subependymal nodular heterotopia and Klippel–Feil syndrome. In this report, a comprehensive review of fetal cervical myelomeningocele with its prenatal diagnosis and long-term outcomes is presented.

Keywords

• cervical meningocele
• cervical myelomeningocele
• magnetic resonance imaging
• prenatal diagnosis
• ultrasonography