Abstract.
OBJECTIVE: Ovarian cysts are relatively common prenatal findings in female fetuses. The aim of this study is to evaluate the ability of antenatal ultrasound in predicting spontaneous regression or a need for surgery.
DESIGN: All cases of fetal ovarian cysts treated in our Department between 2007 and 2016 were included. Patients underwent a sonographic monitoring in utero and after birth until spontaneous or surgical resolution. Subjects were divided into two groups according to their postnatal management. Receiver-operating characteristics (ROC) curves were used to test the predictive ability for postnatal surgery of the cyst’s mean and maximum diameters; their optimal cut off points were also determined.
RESULTS: 38 cases of antenatally-detected fetal ovarian cysts were included. 12/38 cases underwent surgery (Group A). 26/38 cases were resolved spontaneously (Group B). Cyst size of those which were surgically excised significantly differed from those that regressed spontaneously. ROC curve pointed to 45 mm and 47 mm as optimal cut off points for the mean and the maximum cystic diameters, respectively.
CONCLUSIONS: Cyst size and echo-structure seemed good predictors for prognosis after birth. The optimal cut off points of the cysts mean and maximum diameters in predicting postnatal surgery have been identified as 45 mm and 47 mm, respectively.