PRENATAL-DIAGNOSIS AND THERAPY OF A FETAL HEPATIC CYST IN THE 2ND-TRIMESTER

The authors report on the prenatal diagnosis and management of a cysti c malformation in the fetal abdomen in the fourteenth week of pregnanc y. The cystic lesion was so large that an exact topographic diagnosis could not be made at the beginning of the second trimester. Karyotypin g by chorion villi sampling (CVS) yielded a normal result. In the nine teenth week of pregnancy the cyst was tapped because it displaced othe r thoracic and abdominal organs due to its size. Cytological examinati on of the cystic fluid showed cells of all three hemopoiesis lines der iving from a liver cyst. After the procedure it was possible to exclud e additional malformations and cystic lesions in other organs sonograp hically. The pregnancy was continued without any problems and ended wi th the spontaneous delivery of a healthy, growth-retarded female in th e thirtyseventh week of gestation. The cystic lesion in the liver had not reoccurred. Sonography of the newborn showed some echogenic spots in the right hepatic lobe reflecting calcification. Blood sampling of the newborn gave normal results in all parameters. The differential di agnosis of cystic lesions in the fetal abdomen is also considered in t he presented paper.