The Turkish Journal of Pediatrics 2018 , Vol 60 , Num 5
Non-immune hydrops fetalis: A retrospective analysis of 151 autopsies performed at a single center
Gözdem Kaykı 1 ,Şafak Güçer 2 ,Zuhal Akçören 2 ,Diclehan Orhan 2 ,Beril Talim 2 ,Murat Yurdakök 3 ,Şule Yiğit 3 ,Osman Koray Boduroğlu 4 ,Gülen Eda Utine 4 ,Gökçen Örgül 5 ,M. Sinan Beksaç 5
1 Departments of Pediatrics, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey
2 Division of Pediatric Pathology, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey
3 Departments of Neonatology, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey
4 Departments of Genetics, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey
5 Division of Perinatology, Obstetrics and Gynecology, Hacettepe University Faculty of Medicine, Ankara, Turkey
DOI : 10.24953/turkjped.2018.05.001 Kaykı G, Güçer Ş, Akçören Z, Orhan D, Talim B, Yurdakök M, Yiğit Ş, Boduroğlu OK, Utine GE, Örgül G, Beksac MS. Non-immune hydrops fetalis: A retrospective analysis of 151 autopsies performed at a single center. Turk J Pediatr 2018; 60: 471-477.

We retrospectively evaluated autopsies performed on 151 non-immune hydrops fetalis (NIHF) cases to determine the etiology and pathological findings. Further, cases identified between 1980 and 2004 were compared with those identified between 2005 and 2015 to investigate the improvement of diagnostic performance of our institution. The mean gestational age during the fetal autopsy was 25 weeks. There were 30 live-born infants in the study group. The etiology of NIHF could be determined in 91 cases (60.3%), while it remained undefined in remaining 60 cases. The most commonly associated pathological conditions were cardiovascular malformations (11.3%), followed by chromosomal abnormalities (9.3%). Prior to 20th gestation week, genetic anomalies and cystic hygromas were the most common etiological factors, and after 30 weeks of gestation, cardiac abnormalities were found to be the most common causes. With time, the rate of undefined cases decreased from 48.4% to 33.75%. NIHF is a complex medical condition necessitating a multidisciplinary management approach. Progress in molecular genetics and imaging techniques is expected to improve diagnostic performance for rapid and better identification. Keywords : congenital malformations, etiology, fetal autopsy, perinatal autopsy, nonimmune hydrops fetalis

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