ABSTRACT
This chapter discusses the prenatal diagnosis of neonatal surgical conditions. It is especially important to perform ultrasound for pregnancies with maternal risk factors and if there is an elevation in maternal serum alphafetoprotein (MSAFP). Magnetic resonance imaging (MRI) is most commonly used to evaluate the fetal central nervous system, the ability to obtain cross-sectional imaging has made this tool a crucial adjunct to ultrasound for many pediatric surgical diseases, including measurement of lung sizes in congenital diaphragmatic hernia (CDH) and evaluation of airway anatomy in neck masses. Prenatal interventions for sacrococcygeal teratoma (SCT) include cyst aspiration, amnioreduction, amnioinfusion, or open fetal surgery for resection of the mass. Congenital cystic adenomatoid malformation (CCAM) represents a spectrum of disease characterized by cystic lesions of the lung. Esophageal atresia is typically diagnosed on prenatal ultrasound by the presence of a small or absent stomach bubble and polyhydramnios, but no ultrasound finding is sensitive or specific for esophageal atresia.
