Prenatal diagnosis of congenital vascular rings and slings: sonographic features and perinatal outcome in 81 consecutive cases

Objective To describe the sonographic features and perinatal outcome of congenital vascular rings diagnosed prenatally at a single tertiary care institution. Methods All cases of congenital vascular rings diagnosed by prenatal ultrasound between July 2005 and December 2009 were identified at a single referral center using an established perinatal database. The diagnosis was confirmed by postnatal echocardiography for live‐born infants or autopsy for terminated cases. Results The overall incidence of vascular ring during this 5‐year period was 0.086% (81 cases among 94 321 women undergoing perinatal ultrasound examination). Forty‐four cases had complete O‐shaped (n = 3) or U‐shaped (n = 41) vascular rings, and 37 cases had incomplete C‐shaped vascular rings (vascular slings). The most common type of vascular ring seen in 50.6% (41/81) of cases was a right aortic arch with aberrant left subclavian artery. The second most common type was a left aortic arch with an aberrant right subclavian artery [39.5% (32/81)]. Chromosomal analysis was performed prenatally in 46 pregnancies, and six cases (13.0%) of fetal aneuploidy were identified. Conclusions Congenital vascular rings can be diagnosed with prenatal ultrasound using the three‐vessel trachea view and subsequent fetal echocardiography with particular attention to the relationship of the aortic arches, ductal arches, and the trachea. Copyright © 2011 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.