Effect of Sickle Cell Anemia on Pelvic Dimensions: A Magnetic Resonance Imaging Study

Background: The cesarean delivery rate tends to be higher in women with sickle cell anemia (SCA) and sickle cell trait (SCT) for various reasons. However, pelvic contracture, which may lead to cesarean sections, has never before been studied in these groups. Objectives: The aim of this study was to investigate magnetic resonance (MR) pelvimetry findings of women with SCA and SCT. Patients and Methods: We studied 66 women who underwent MR pelvimetry between March and June 2015 at our center. Our prospective study included 21 women with SCA, 20 women with SCT, and 25 control women. Sagittal inlet, sagittal mid-pelvis, transverse inlet, transverse mid-pelvis and transverse outlet diameters were measured on MR images. The mean diameters were compared with each other and with the control group Results: Sagittal inlet and transverse inlet were not significantly different between the groups. Also, mid-pelvic diameters for the sagittal and transvers mid-pelvis were similar between the groups. Even though the transverse outlet seems to be lesser in the SCA group compared with other groups, it was not statistically significant. Conclusion: Our study demonstrated that the pelvic roofs of women with SCA and SCT are indistinguishable from healthy women. Thereby, maternal pelvic structures that impact delivery types may not be significantly changed in SCA and SCT diseases. We believe that when making decisions about modes of delivery, these results should be taken into consideration.