Accuracy of Magnetic Resonance Imaging in Diagnosing Placenta Accreta: A Systematic Review and Meta-Analysis

BACKGROUND: The disease burden and incidence of placenta accreta are increasing worldwide. The morbidity and mortality associated with undiagnosed placenta accreta are both high, highlighting the important of early diagnosis and intervention. In recent years, increasing studies are exploring the diagnostic value of magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) for placenta accreta. Compared with traditional ultrasound, MRI has the advantages of high-resolution, multiangle imaging, and less influence by amniotic fluid and intestinal gas. However, the reported diagnostic accuracy among studies was inconsistent. Therefore, this study is aimed at exploring the diagnostic value of MRI for placenta accreta by systematic review and meta-analysis. METHODS: Relevant literature were systematically searched in PubMed, Ovid, Embase, ScienceDirect database, CNKI, and Wanfang database by using medical subject headings and relevant diagnostic terminologies such as sensitivity, specificity, likelihood ratio, receiver-operating characteristic curve, and area under the curve. The sensitivity, specificity, positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, and area under the curve of the included literature were analyzed using stata 17.0 software. Publication bias of the included studies was assessed by Deek's funnel plot. Cochrane Q statistics and I(2) statistics were used to test the heterogeneity. RESULTS: A total of 10 primary publications, comprising 4 retrospective studies and 6 prospective studies, were included in this meta-analysis. The gestational weeks of pregnant women ranged from 32 to 35 weeks, and the sample size ranged from 37 cases to 575 cases. Only 4 studies used the blind method in the process of clinical diagnosis by MRI. The combined sensitivity, specificity, and area of curve under summary receiver-operating characteristic for the diagnosis of placenta accreta by MRI were 0.88 (95% CI, 0.79-0.93), 0.79 (95% CI, 0.68-0.87), and 0.91 (95% CI, 0.88.-0.93), respectively. The combined positive likelihood ratio, negative likelihood ratio, diagnostic odds ratio, and diagnostic score were 4.17 (95% CI, 2.62-6.66), 0.16 (95% CI, 0.09-0.29), 26.61 (95% CI, 10.22-69.28), and 3.28 (95% CI, 2.32-4.24), respectively. No publication bias was noted. CONCLUSION: Diagnosis of placenta accreta by MRI has good accuracy and predictive value that warrants clinical promotion.