Comparison of Placental Strain Elastography Values Between Healthy Pregnant Women and Pregnant Women with Intrauterine Growth Restriction or Preeclampsia

Objective: We aimed to determine strain elastography values in the placentas of healthy pregnant women and pregnant women with intrauterine growth restriction (IUGR) and preeclampsia (PE). To obtain more objective data, we also examined whether strain ratio values change with placental maturation at different gestational weeks. Materials and Methods: In our prospective randomized study, 64 pregnant women were divided into groups according to the degree of placental maturation (placenta grades 1, 2, and 3) and the trimester they were in to determine strain elastography values. Strain rates of the target tissue (placenta) and subcuta- neous adipose tissue were calculated. Results: According to our study, there was no statistically significant difference between the degree of placental maturation and strain ratio values. Addi- tionally, no significant difference was detected in the strain ratio values of healthy pregnant women in the second and third trimesters. However, in cases with preeclampsia and intrauterine growth restriction, strain ratio values were found to be statistically significantly higher, especially in pregnant women in the second and third trimesters. We found a moderate correlation between strain ratio values and uterine artery S/D. Additionally, we observed a moderate positive correlation between strain ratio and BMI. Conclusion: Our findings indicate that placental elastography strain ratio values may increase in pregnant women with preeclampsia and IUGR. These results support previous studies. Furthermore, our study shows that placental elastography strain rate values are not affected by gestational age or placental matura- tion (second and third trimesters) in healthy pregnant women. Our study was conducted in a reference hospital with a limited number of patients and restricted ultrasound imaging facilities. Future research with a larger sample size and advanced imaging techniques is recommended to support these findings.