Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate the reproducibility of a standardized method to assess the ultrasound liver-to-thoracic area ratio in fetuses with congenital diaphragmatic hernia.
Methods: We selected 24 images of 9 fetuses diagnosed with left-sided at our institution between January 2010 and December 2017. Eight operators (1 maternal-fetal medicine specialist and 7 sonographers) reviewed the selected images and assessed the ultrasound liver-to-thoracic area ratio according to a standardized protocol. We evaluated the correlation between operators using the intraclass correlation coefficient and compared agreement between the sonographers and a physician with experience in measuring the ultrasound liver-to-thoracic area ratio using a Bland-Altman analysis.
Results: Good intraoperator reproducibility was observed for the standardized ultrasound liver-to-thoracic area ratio (intraclass correlation coefficient, 0.78). Good agreement among sonographers and the physician was also observed for the standardized measurements (bias, 0.01; precision, 0.03; limits of agreement, -0.05 to + 0.07).
Conclusions: We demonstrated that good intraoperator and interoperator reproducibility of ultrasound liver-to-thoracic area ratio assessment is feasible after standardizing the method in our center.
Keywords: congenital diaphragmatic hernia; fetal lungs; fetal therapy; fetoscopic tracheal occlusion; liver-to-thoracic area; obstetrics; prenatal diagnosis; pulmonary hypoplasia; ultrasound.
© 2018 by the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine.