Aim: The aim of this study was to evaluate the effectiveness and safety of a transvaginal approach for chorionic villous sampling (CVS).
Methods: We carried out a retrospective data analysis of all the transvaginal CVS procedures performed for the purpose of prenatal diagnosis in a university-level referral center between January 2000 and December 2014. Women underwent the prenatal testing between 10 and 17 weeks of gestation mainly for hematological disorders involving single gene defects. The main outcomes were successful sampling rate, maternal contamination rate, post-procedure complications rates, and immediate fetal loss rate (<14 days post-procedure).
Results: A total of 1138 transvaginal CVS were performed during the study period and were available for analysis. The sampling success rate after the first attempt was 98.5% (1121/1138) and the overall success rate was 99.6% (1133/1138). The maternal contamination rate was 0.4% (5/1138). While two patients had vaginal bleeding (0.2%), fresh retroplacental collection was noted in four patients (0.4%) post-procedure. None of the patients developed ascending uterine infection following CVS. The immediate fetal loss rate was 0.2% (2/1138).
Conclusion: Transvaginal approach is associated with high sampling success, along with low rates of maternal contamination and post-procedure complications; hence, it can be offered as an effective alternative method of CVS.
Keywords: CVS; chorionic villous sampling; molecular genetics.
© 2016 Japan Society of Obstetrics and Gynecology.