Early ultrasound diagnosis of conjoined twins at eight weeks of pregnancy: A case report

BACKGROUND Conjoined twins are a rare occurrence,and the majority of these malformations are detected during second trimester screening.CASE SUMMARY Herein we report a case of conjoined twins,which was diagnosed by ultrasound at 8 wk gestation and was normal at 7 wk gestation.The two fetuses shared one heart and were diagnosed as thoracopagus twins.This is the first report of conjoined twins diagnosed at 8 wk gestation.The pregnancy was terminated electively at 9 wk gestation.Because some congenital malformations can be diagnosed earlier,a prenatal ultrasound examination at an early gestational stage cannot be dismissed.CONCLUSION This case demonstrates that a 7-8 wk gestation might be the earliest period when conjoined twins can be diagnosed by ultrasound.

Update on thyroid ultrasound: a narrative review from diagnostic criteria to artificial intelligence techniques

Objective Ultrasound imaging is well known to play an important role in the detection of thyroid disease, but the management of thyroid ultrasound remains inconsistent. Both standardized diagnostic criteria and new ultrasound technologies are essential for improving the accuracy of thyroid ultrasound. This study reviewed the global guidelines of thyroid ultrasound and analyzed their common characteristics for basic clinical screening. Advances in the application of a combination of thyroid ultrasound and artificial intelligence (AI) were also presented. Data sources An extensive search of the PubMed database was undertaken, focusing on research published after 2001 with keywords including thyroid ultrasound, guideline, AI, segmentation, image classification, and deep learning. Study selection Several types of articles, including original studies and literature reviews, were identified and reviewed to summarize the importance of standardization and new technology in thyroid ultrasound diagnosis. Results Ultrasound has become an important diagnostic technique in thyroid nodules. Both standardized diagnostic criteria and new ultrasound technologies are essential for improving the accuracy of thyroid ultrasound. In the standardization, since there are no global consensus exists, common characteristics such as a multi-feature diagnosis, the performance of lymph nodes, explicit indications of fine needle aspiration, and the diagnosis of special populations should be focused on. Besides, evidence suggests that AI technique has a good effect on the unavoidable limitations of traditional ultrasound, and the combination of diagnostic criteria and AI may lead to a great promotion in thyroid diagnosis. Conclusion Standardization and development of novel techniques are key factors to improving thyroid ultrasound, and both should be considered in normal clinical use.

A study of follicular development and oocyte maturity predicted by transvaginal ultrasound on the day of human chorionic gonadotropin injection

Quality of oocytes is closely related to the pregnancy outcome of in vitro fertilization(IVF).During the process of oocyte maturity,human chorionic gonadotropin(hCG)can simulate the effects of luteinizing hormone peak,which can further accelerate the maturation of follicles.The right time of hCG injection is a decisive factor for retrieving high-quality oocytes.[1]The optimal hCG injection time is usually determined using average diameter of follicle measured by transvaginal ultrasound.However,the threshold value of the diameter is still controversial.[2]The diameter measurement becomes increasingly less reliable when there are numerous follicles of different sizes and irregularly shaped structures during controlled ovarian hyperstimulation(COH)cycle.Follicle angiogenesis has been proved to be essential for the oocytes maturity in recent years.[3]But there are still few quantitative analyses of multi-ultrasound parameters of peri-follicular blood flow(PFBF)and the oocyte quality.