Impaired cerebral cortex development in human fetuses with posterior brain abnormalities and diagnosed open neural tube defects at 11 – 13 weeks

Objective: To evaluate fetal cerebral cortex development at 11 – 15 weeks of gestation in human fetuses with posterior brain abnormalities (BS-BSOB-ratio > 95th centile, CM < 5th centile) and confirmed diagnosis of neural tube defects such as open spina bifida during their 11 – 13-week scan, and to compare it with normal development (Fietz et al. 2010, Lachmann et al. 2011, Scheier et al. 2011). Methods: Pregnant women were referred to our first trimester clinic for measurement of nuchal translucency and combined risk assessment for pre-eclampsia, premature birth, fetal growth restriction, chromosomal abnormalit…