The Medical Journal of Basrah University

Abstract

ABSTRACT
This is a prospective follow-up study involving 314 pregnant women who attended the U/S department in
one of the main hospitals in Basrah city over the period from December 2003-December 2004.
The aim of the study was to assess the validity of ultrasound in prenatal detection of congenital anomalies
in Basrah city. The majorities (64.3%) of pregnant women were attending for U/S examination in their
third trimester, and only 0.3% were attending in the first trimester. The validity of prenatal U/S
examination in detecting fetal congenital abnormalities was found to be very high. The study recommended
that U/S examination should become part of the antenatal care provided in the primary health care centres.