Objective: Right descending aortas have been correlated with an increased risk of congenital heart disease. Nevertheless, the aortic position remains a largely overlooked diagnostic tool in second-trimester sonography because no formal system for assessing the position exists. By developing a method of assigning the position of the aorta relative to the thoracic midline, diagnostic use of the descending aorta's position might be implemented more easily.
Methods: The method of assessing the position relative to the midline was tested by comparing the analysis of 2 independent observers, who showed a 94.4% concordance rate.
Results: Comparison of the percentages of aortic positions between the gestational ages (GAs) of 18 and 21 weeks showed no significant correlation between the aortic position and GA.
Conclusions: We suggest simply paying attention to the aortic position in an already standard view. The extra effort is minimal, and it has the potential to improve the diagnostic accuracy of the 4-chamber view.