Evaluation of Placenta by Shear Wave Elastography in Gestational Diabetes Mellitus

Abstract

Purpose: This study aims to determine the placental elasticity by using shear wave elastography (SWE) in women with gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM), and to compare it with the placental elasticity of the control group. Materials and Methods: Thirty-one women with GDM and 30 healthy pregnant between August-December 2018 were included in the study. Pregnant women with a history of hypertension, systemic disease, and smoking, who were diagnosed with diabetes mellitus before pregnancy and did not have anterior placenta were excluded from the study. SWE evaluations were carried out separately by two blinded radiologists. For SWE examination, regions of the placenta with homogeneous echotexture and without vascular and calcification were preferred. For elasticity evaluation, measurements were taken from 3 different localizations using 10 mm diameter circular areas, and the average value was calculated. Results: The mean age of the GDM group was significantly higher than that of the control group (p=0.039). Gestational weeks did not differ significantly between the two groups (p=0.55). The median (min-max) stiffness values of the placenta were 14.1 (5-21.9) kPa in the GDM group and 12.6 (7.6-39.6) kPa in the control group. There was no statistically significant difference between the two groups (p=0.26). There was no relationship between maternal age and gestational week with placental elasticity in both groups (p=0.306, p=0.23, p=0.19, p=0.27). Intraclass correlation coefficients were 0.88 for stiffness (kPa) and 0.84 for velocity (m/s). Conclusion: SWE can be used as a complementary method to grayscale ultrasonography to evaluate the placenta, as in many organs.

Keywords

• gestational diabetes mellitus
• placenta
• shear wave elastography
• ultrasound