Pattern of prenatal ultrasound diagnosed anterior abdominal wall defects at the University College Hospital, Ibadan, Nigeria: A pictorial essay

Abstract

Anterior abdominal wall defects form a wide spectrum of congenital abnormalities that allow the abdominal contents to protrude through an unusual opening on the abdominal wall. These defects could be physiological or pathological depending on the time of diagnosis. They include physiological gut herniation, congenital umbilical cord hernia, omphalocele, gastroschisis, ectopia cordis, bladder exstrophy, body-stalk anomaly, Prune-Belly Syndrome, and pentalogy of Cantrell. Correct prenatal diagnosis of these anomalies with ultrasound (US) is extremely important for patient management. Evaluation of the defect relative to the umbilical cord insertion site is fundamentally important in differentiating among the various malformations. We present a pictorial essay of the spectrum of anterior abdominal wall defects diagnosed prenatally with US seen over a 5-year period at the University College Hospital, Ibadan.