Correlation between transabdominal ultrasound features of ectopic gestation and surgical findings at the university college hospital, Ibadan: A preliminary review

Abstract

Introduction: Ectopic pregnancy in Sub‑Saharan Africa has an incidence of 1%‑5% of all deliveries and 5%‑10% of all gynaecological admissions. The fallopian tube is the most common site of occurrence of an ectopic pregnancy and ruptured ectopic is the commonest variety seen in low resource settings.

Materials and Method: This is a 2‑year retrospective diagnostic accuracy test of transabdominal ultrasonographic findings in ectopic pregnancy, using surgical findings as the gold‑standard. The study was conducted at the Radiology Department of the University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria between 1 January 2013 and 31 December 2014. Radiological request cards of 41 women who were clinically suspected to have an ectopic pregnancy and had a transabdominal ultrasound scan were retrieved, however, only 34 were suitable for analysis. Data analysis was done using the Statistical Package for Social Sciences (SPSS) version 20 (Chicago, IL, USA). A P value of <0.05 was regarded as statistically significant.

Results: The ages of the women ranged between 20 and 40 years with a mean age of 29.94 ± 5.06 years. The mean gestational age at time of scan was 44.8 days (6 weeks + 3 days). Out of 34 patients reviewed in this study, 29 had surgical interventions in the course of their management and 26 had ectopic gestation confirmed at surgery. This study found a Sensitivity of 88.4%, Specificity of 37.5% and Positive and Negative predictive values of 82.1% and 50%, respectively.

Conclusion: This preliminary study suggests that transabdominal ultrasonography is a useful and reliable means of diagnosing ectopic pregnancy particularly in low‑resource settings where availability and or technical skill for transvaginal ultrasonography is not readily available.

Keywords: Correlation; ectopic gestation; surgical findings; transabdominal ultrasound