FETO-AMNIOTIC SHUNTING - REPORT OF THE EXPERIENCE OF 4 EUROPEAN CENTERS

Few reports concerning intrauterine shunting are available. We investi gated the impact of this method. In order to evaluate intrauterine shu nting and the complication rate for different indications, we sent a q uestionnaire to all German-speaking level 3 centres. In four level 3 c entres, 52 intrauterine catheters were inserted in 34 fetuses. The ind ications were uni- or bilateral hydrothorax in nine cases, cystic aden omatoid malformation of the lung in four cases, infravesical stenosis in 13 cases, and fetal ascites in eight cases. In three cases (6 per c ent), difficulties occurred when the drain was inserted. In 15 cases ( 29 per cent), the function of the drain was reduced by dislocation or occlusion. The mortality rate caused by shunting was as high as eight per cent (four cases). The application of an intrauterine shunt curren tly represents a rarely performed ultrasound-guided therapeutic interv ention in the fetus. In all cases, the indication for shunting is to a void compression of normal tissue by cystic structures. A high complic ation rate restricts the application of drainage to selected cases.