Anencephaly: Do the Pregnancy and Maternal Characteristics Impact the Pregnancy Outcome?

Abstract

Objective. To describe the characteristics of obstetric and perinatal outcome of a group of pregnancies complicated by an anencephalic fetus. Methods. Observational study including anencephalic fetuses, divided into groups according to the evolution of pregnancy: elective termination of pregnancy ETP; stillbirths (SBs); live births (LBs), and loss of follow-up. After a univariate description of the sample, some variables were compared using statistical tests. Results. 180 anencephalic fetuses were included. The mean maternal age was 25.3 years. In 71 fetuses (39%) were found additional anomalies. Comparing the groups, no statistical differences in maternal age (), parity (), number of previous abortion (), fetal sex () and additional anomalies () were found. Among those fetuses whose parents opted for continuation of pregnancy (), 20 spontaneous intrauterine deaths occurred (38%) and 33 were live births (62%). The average postnatal survival time was 51 minutes. There was no association between survival time and gestational age () or the presence of additional malformations (). Conclusion. Results presented here could contribute to a better understanding of the natural history of this malformation, allowing obstetricians a more detailed discussion with the families.