Neural tube defects and uterus development in human fetuses

Abstract

One of the most common malformations of the central nervous system is related to embryonic neural tube alterations. We hypothesized that anencephaly affects the development of the uterus during the human second trimester of pregnancy. The objective of this study was to study the biometric parameters of the uterus in fetuses with anencephaly and compare them with normocephalic fetuses at that important. In our study, 34 female fetuses were analyzed, 22 normal and 12 anencephalic, aged between 12 and 22 weeks post-conception (WPC). After dissection of the pelvis and individualization of the genital tract, we evaluated the length and width of the uterus using the Image J software. We compared the means statistically using the Wilcoxon-Mann–Whitney test and performed linear regression. We identify significant differences between the uterus length (mm)/weight (g) × 100 (p = 0.0046) and uterus width (mm)/weight (g) × 100 (p = 0.0013) when we compared the control with the anencephalic group. The linear regression analysis indicated that 80% significance was found in the correlations in normocephalic fetuses (12.9 to 22.6 WPC) and 40% significance in anencephalic fetuses (12.3 to 18.6 WPC). The measurements of the uterus were greater in anencephalic group but there are no difference in the uterine width and length growth curves during the period studied. Further studies are required to support the hypothesis suggesting that anencephaly may affect uterine development during the human fetal period.