Is It Possible To Predict Stillbirth In The Third Trimester?

Stillbirth is a traumatic event for both the mother, regardless the socio-economic status, and the doctor who monitors the pregnancy. Due to the fact that studies show that the incidence of stillbirth increases in the final weeks of pregnancy, one might ask himself if there is a way of predicting its occurrence in the third trimester.Although many risk factors are associated with SIUD (sudden intrauterine death) including gestational age, high maternal age, high cigarette consumption, overweight or obesity and low education, studies show that fifty-two percent of stillbirths classified as SIUD are affected by intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR).In the clinical emergency "Saint Pantelimon" hospital, Bucharest, during 2011-2016, 55 cases of stillbirth were included in a retrospective study - 56% of stillbirths were SGA fetuses, 22% were AGA fetuses while the other 22% were either VLBW (very low birth weight) or ELBW (extremely low birth weight) fetuses. After corroborating the clinical and paraclinical data and the histopathologycal findings we noticed that 37% of the stillbirth remained SIUD.Our firm belief is that fetal Doppler in the third trimester is an important tool for predicting negative fetal outcome. We consider of great importance the monitoring of pregnancy using not only fetal biometry but also fetal Doppler - as AGA (appropriate for gestational age) babies are often undiagnosed IUGR, thus at great risk for SIUD. Even though more studies are necessary in order to implement a uniformity concerning the monitoring of a pregnancy, we believe that for the moment the association between EFW (estimate fetal weight), UtA (uterine artery) Doppler and CPR (cerebroplacental ratio) is a good enough tool for stillbirth prediction.