High-intensity ultrasound OK for cesarean scar pregnancy

(HealthDay)—High-intensity focused ultrasound (HIFU) can play a role in treating cesarean scar pregnancy (CSP), according to a small study published in the October issue of the American Journal of Obstetrics & Gynecology.

Juhua Xiao, M.D., from the Jiangxi Maternal and Child Health Hospital in Nanchang, China, and colleagues treated 16 patients with CSP with ultrasound-guided HIFU ablation. Disappearance of CSP mass, undetectable serum beta human chorionic gonadotropin, and no serious complications such as severe bleeding, uterine rupture, or hysterectomy were the criteria used to define successful treatment.

The researchers found that after two to five treatment sessions, the mean time for achieving undetectable serum beta human chorionic gonadotropin was 4.94 weeks, and the mean time for CSP mass disappearance was 6.69 weeks. In one to two days the moderate abdominal pain in three patients subsided, while nine patients experienced mild vaginal bleeding (<30 mL) that resolved within two to three days. At follow-up, all 16 patients had recovered their normal menstruation function.

"These preliminary results suggest that ultrasound-guided HIFU ablation is a noninvasive, feasible, and effective method for the treatment of CSP," the authors write.

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