Human Embryonic Growth and Development of the Cerebellum Using 3-Dimensional Ultrasound and Virtual Reality:

The aim of our study was to evaluate the first trimester cerebellar growth and development using 2 different measuring techniques: 3-dimensional (3D) and virtual reality (VR) ultrasound visualization. The cerebellum measurements were related to gestational age (GA) and crown-rump length (CRL). Finally, the reproducibility of both the methods was tested. In a prospective cohort study, we collected 630 first trimester, serially obtained, 3D ultrasound scans of 112 uncomplicated pregnancies between 7 + 0 and 12 + 6 weeks of GA. Only scans with high-quality images of the fossa posterior were selected for the analysis. Measurements were performed offline in the coronal plane using 3D (4D view) and VR (V-Scope) software. The VR enables the observer to use all available dimensions in a data set by visualizing the volume as a “hologram.” Total cerebellar diameter, left, and right hemispheric diameter, and thickness were measured using both the techniques. All measurements were performed 3 times and means were use...