Devasuda Anblagan1,
Ruta Deshpande2, Nia W. Jones2, Carolyn Costigan1,
Nick Raine Fenning3, Peter Mansell2, George Bugg2,
Lopa Leach4, Penny A. Gowland1
1Sir Peter
Mansfield Magnetic Resonance Centre, University of Nottingham, Nottingham,
Nottinghamshire, United Kingdom; 2Nottingham University Hospitals
NHS Trust, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom; 3School
of Clinical Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom; 4School
of Biomedical Sciences, University of Nottingham, Nottingham, United Kingdom
High volume, low resistance blood flow in the placenta is thought to be essential for optimal materno-fetal nutrient exchange. Intrauterine Growth Restriction and maternal diabetes are often related to abnormal placental perfusion. Using IVIM we assessed placental blood flow in diabetic and healthy mothers. We report the difference in distribution of placental blood flow in diabetic placentae: in the normal placenta the flow was fairly uniformly distributed, whilst in the diabetic placenta the flow distribution was generally lower but with small areas of higher flow. This may be related to the abnormal fetal development associated with diabetic pregnancies.