Prenatal echocardiographic diagnosis and differential diagnosis of complete vascular rings

Objective To reseach the value of prenatal echocardiography in diagnosis and differential diagnosis of complete vascular ring.Methods The prenatal echocardiograms of five fetuses with complete vascular rings diagnosed by either postnatal echocardiography or fetal autopsy at our hospital were reviewed.Results One fetus had a double aortic arch.Four fetuses had a right aortic arch,an aberrant artery(three with an aberrant left subclavian artery and one with an aberrant left innominate artery),and a left ductus arteriosus.On the three-vessel and trachea view,the ascending aorta diverges before the trachea as the left and right aortic arches,which encircle and then converge behind the trachea as the descending aorta,forming an O-shaped complete vascular ring.A U-shaped complete vascular ring around the esophagus was composed of the right aortic arch,aberrant artery and left ductus arteriosus.The aberrant artery could be identified as either the aberrant left subclavian artery or aberrant left innominate artery based on the number of the branches of the right aortic arch,the orientation of the first branch,and the branches of the aberrant artery.Conclusion Three-vessel and trachea view is the important section to diagnose the congenital completeness vascular ring.Fetal echocardiography has great clinical value in prenatal diagnosis or differential diagnosis of complete vascular ring.