Bizarre Blood Flow Patterns Detected by Transvaginal Pulsed and Color Doppler Ultrasonography in Ectopic Pregnancies

Authors: Eyüp EKİCİ, Kubilay VİCDAN, Muammer DOĞAN, Kazım ARAL, Tuğrul AYDOĞDU, Oya GÖKMEN

Abstract: The characteristics of blood flow patterns detected by transvaginal pulsed and color Doppler ultrasonography were evoluated in ectopic pregnanacies. Two hundred and fifteen patients with surgically and histopathologically confirmed ectopic preg-nancies were included in this study. Of 215 patients, 113 (52.5 %) had an ectopic trophoblastic flow. 106 of them (93.8 %)showed a typical trophoblastic flow characterized by a high-velocity and low-impedance flow, whereas 7 (6.2 %) had bizarre blood waveforms including high-impedance and reversed diastolic flow. It was concluded that although most of the cases with ectopic pregnancy demonstrate a typical flow, a wide range of flow waveforms including some bizarre forms may be detected. In the presence of ectopic trophoblastic flow suggesting an ectopic pregnancy, both ovaries should be visualized seperately and it should be cleary demonstrated that this flow is obtained seperate from ovaries and uterus.

Keywords: Ectopic pregnancy, ultrasonography, color Doppler, Trophoblastic flow.

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