Fetal echopsy (ultrasonographic autopsy) of an acardius myelancephalus and its correlation with antenatal ultrasonographic findings

Aberrant transplacental arteriovenous shunts between the placental and cord vessels of monozygotic monoamniotic twins or triplets result in the formation of an acardius. The prenatal diagnosis of this condition has been reported occasionally in the literature. A subtype categorized as acardius myelancephalus was diagnosed at 32 weeks of gestation by ultrasonography (USG). The pregnancy was aborted because of poor prognostic predictors and the acardius was subjected to ultrasonographic autopsy (fetal echopsy). The antenatal USG features were correlated with echopsy findings for confirmation of the antenatal findings and for a better visual perception of the prenatal diagnostic features. The echopsy revealed more precise details. Fetal echopsy avoids the medicolegal problems concerned with parental consent for classical invasive fetal autopsy.