Prenatal Ultrasound Features of Biliary Atresia: Diagnostic Significance of Abnormal Gallbladder Size and Hepatic Hilar Cyst

作者：Xu Wu, Wen Ling, Xiaolong Ren, Guorong Lyu, Fengying Ye, Yuanfang Lai, Luyao Zhou, Lizhu Chen, Zongjie Weng · 发表于：Prenatal Diagnosis · 年份：2025 · DOI：10.1002/pd.6865 · 被引用次数：4 · 研究领域：Pediatric Hepatobiliary Diseases and Treatments、Gallbladder and Bile Duct Disorders、Pancreatitis Pathology and Treatment

OBJECTIVE: To explore the predictive potential of prenatal ultrasound features and their capacity to differentiate biliary atresia (BA) in fetuses exhibiting biliary abnormalities. METHODS: weeks) were retrospectively analyzed in the 2018-2022 period. Fetuses with suspected biliary abnormalities in the second trimester were identified, and the cases were categorized into 5 groups: enlarged fetal gallbladder, small fetal gallbladder, non-visualized fetal gallbladder, hepatic hilar cyst, and fetal duplicated gallbladder. Follow-up assessments were conducted in the third trimester and postnatally. RESULTS: Among the 339 cases with suspected fetal biliary abnormalities, 10 cases were postnatally diagnosed with BA. Among them, 2 cases (2.04%, 2/98) were in the small fetal gallbladder group, 3 cases (3.95%, 3/76) were in the non-visualized fetal gallbladder group, and 5 cases (20.83%, 5/24) were in the hepatic hilar cyst group. In the small fetal gallbladder, non-visualized fetal gallbladder, and total suspected fetal biliary abnormalities groups, the incidence of BA increased when accompanied by additional structural abnormalities compared with isolated cases (all p < 0.05). Within the small fetal gallbladder and non-visualized fetal gallbladder groups, a consistent feature associated with BA and gallbladder agenesis was the persistence of abnormal gallbladder size despite increasing gestational age. In the group with hepatic hilar cysts, significant prenatal differences between c...