[Sonographic measurement of cervical length and prediction of spontaneous preterm delivery: how useful is it?]

Abstract

Preterm delivery is a major concern in Maternal-Fetal Medicine. The sonographic measurement of the cervix is a reproducible and safe method to assess cervical length. Many authors have shown the benefits of cervical assessment in the screening of pregnant women at risk of preterm labor. Although screening could be useful in women at high-risk for preterm spontaneous labor, in a low-risk population the accuracy of the method is limited. An important issue is the usefulness of cervical cerclage to prevent preterm birth when a short cervix is detected by ultrasonography. In this review, the authors present new evidence of recent literature reporting sonographic measurement of cervical length and prediction of spontaneous preterm birth.