Prediction of pulmonary hypoplasia in mid-trimester preterm prelabor rupture of membranes: research or clinical practice?

The author discusses the diagnosis for pulmonary hypoplasia in mid-trimester pregnancy. It is mentioned that pathophysiological reasons for pulmonary hypoplasia includes extrinsic compression of fetal lungs, impairment in vascular perfusion and fluid loss in lungs and airways. The formal diagnosis of pulmonary hypoplasia can be understand by conducting postmortem and examining lung-to-body weight ratio. In living fetus, diagnosis can be done through two and three dimensional ultrasonography.