Perigestational Hemorrhage





KEY FACTS


Terminology





  • Perigestational hemorrhage (PGH): Hematoma in subchorionic space adjacent to gestational sac (GS)



  • Subchorionic hematoma is synonymous with PGH



Imaging





  • Hematoma appearance depends on age of blood




    • Acute hematoma is echogenic



    • Subacute hematoma is complex, more hypoechoic



    • Old hematoma approaches sonolucent




  • PGH has no blood flow on color Doppler



  • Estimate PGH size compared with GS size (subjectively)




    • ≤ 10% vs. 11-25% vs. 26-50% vs. > 50%



    • Other measurement criteria shown to be less accurate (including amount of detachment of early placenta)




Top Differential Diagnoses





  • Early twin gestation (PGH mimics 2nd sac)



  • Chorioamniotic separation in late 1st trimester



Clinical Issues





  • Large PGH associated with ↑ risk for pregnancy loss




    • PGH > 50% of GS (with living embryo) = 23% loss rate



    • PGH ≤ 10% of GS (with living embryo) = 6% loss rate



    • Loss rates higher if no living embryo at time of diagnosis




  • Early PGH associated with ↑ risk of pregnancy loss




    • 20% loss rate if ≤ 7 weeks vs. 4% if > 8 weeks




  • PGH is common (symptomatic or asymptomatic)




    • 2% of all 1st-trimester patients have PGH



    • 20% of patients with vaginal bleeding have PGH




  • Guarded prognosis if embryonic bradycardia



  • Guarded prognosis if cervix distended with blood



Scanning Tips





  • Take large field of view or cine sweeps to show PGH size compared to GS size



  • Zoom into GS to look for yolk sac, embryo (transvaginal scan often necessary)



  • Document embryo heart rate with M-mode in every case







Typical appearance of small perigestational hemorrhage (PGH) next to an early gestational sac (GS) is shown. The internal echogenicity in the subchorionic hematoma can mimic a yolk sac from a dichorionic twin. Sometimes follow-up is necessary to differentiate between the 2 diagnoses.





Nov 10, 2024 | Posted by in ULTRASONOGRAPHY | Comments Off on Perigestational Hemorrhage

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