This article is part of the supplement: 51st Annual Meeting of the Society for Research into Hydrocephalus and Spina Bifida .

Oral presentation

Muscle echogenicity is increased in fetuses with spina bifida aperta

Renate J Verbeek¹, Johannes H vd Hoeven², Natasha M Maurits², Krystyna M Sollie³, Arend F Bos⁴, Oebele F Brouwer², Wilfred F den Dunnen⁴ and Deborah A Sival^1,4

¹  Pediatric Neurology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center, Groningen, The Netherlands

²  Neurology, University of Groningen, University Medical Center, Groningen, The Netherlands

³  Obstetrics, University of Groningen, University Medical Center, Groningen, The Netherlands

⁴  Pediatrics, University of Groningen, University Medical Center, Groningen, The Netherlands

author email corresponding author email

from 51^st Annual Meeting of the Society for Research into Hydrocephalus and Spina Bifida
Heidelberg, Germany. 27–30 June 2007

Cerebrospinal Fluid Research 2007, 4(Suppl 1):S11doi:10.1186/1743-8454-4-S1-S11

Published:	20 December 2007

First paragraph (this article has no abstract)

In spina bifida aperta (SBA), movements caudal to the meningomyelocele (MMC) are present in utero, but they disappear shortly after birth. Insight in onset and progression of movement loss is therapeutically relevant. Determination of muscle echogenicity (or density (MD)) is used to estimate onset and progression of various neuromuscular disorders in children. In prenatal SBA, we hypothesized that MD assessment could indicate onset and progression of muscle damage in relation to movement loss. Objective: To estimate onset and progression of muscle changes in fetal SBA by MD assessment.