ULTRASONIC DEMONSTRATION OF LOCAL MYOMETRIAL THICKENING IN EARLY INTRAUTERINE PREGNANCY

In a group of women in the first and early second trimesters of pregna ncy, local thickening of a limited region of the myometrium was observ ed ultrasonically. This prospective study aimed to evaluate the incide nce and nature of this phenomenon. Local myometrial thickening was obs erved in 72 women out of 5521 examined (1.3%). Twenty-two were given r itodrine hydrochloride 10 mg by mouth, and 46 were monitored for upto 60 min without treatment. The local myometrial thickening in the ritod rine hydrochloride-treated group disappeared in 21 out of 22 women (95 .5%) compared with the observed group, where the phenomenon disappeare d in only 37 women (80.4%). Local myometrial thickenings probably repr esent transient uterine contractions; they tend to appeal early in pre gnancy, are prolonged, and may respond to ritodrine hydrochloride.