What does a 2 vessel cord mean in pregnancy?
What does a 2 vessel cord mean in pregnancy?
Most babies’ umbilical cords have three blood vessels: one vein, which brings nutrients from the placenta to baby, and two arteries that bring waste back to the placenta. But a two-vessel cord has just one vein and one artery — that’s why the condition is also referred to as having a single umbilical artery.
Why are there two umbilical arteries?
Most cords have one vein and two arteries. The vein carries oxygenated blood from the placenta to the baby and the arteries carry deoxygenated blood from the baby to the placenta. In approximately 1% of pregnancies there are only two vessels —usually a single vein and single artery.
What is a two-vessel cord?
Two-Vessel Cord (Single Umbilical Artery) Two-vessel cord — also known as single umbilical artery (SUA) — occurs in 1 percent of singleton pregnancies and 5 percent of twin and multiple pregnancies. Researchers don’t quite know what causes SUA, though they theorize that the second artery disappears at some point during early pregnancy.
How many vessels does a baby’s cord have?
Instead of those three vessels, your baby’s cord has only two: one vein and one artery. Two-vessel cord — also known as single umbilical artery (SUA) — occurs in 1 percent of singleton pregnancies and 5 percent of twin and multiple pregnancies. Researchers don’t quite know what causes SUA,…
How common is a two vessel umbilical cord?
When a woman has a two vessel umbilical cord, she will have one vein and one artery (see figure 1). This is also referred to as having a Single Umbilical Artery (SUA) (2). Typically, there are not any signs of having a two vessel cord before it is diagnosed via ultrasound. Approximately 0.3-1% of all pregnant women will have a two vessel cord (3).
Is a two-vessel cord aneuploid in utero?
Retrospective analysis was carried out of prenatal findings and pregnancy outcomes when a two-vessel cord was diagnosed in utero. Eighty-two fetuses each with a single umbilical artery were diagnosed by ultrasound. Ten were aneuploid, including nine with visible structural defects and one with early onset intrauterine growth retardation.
