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Research Article: Fetal lung elasticity changes following antenatal betamethasone administration assessed by shear-wave elastography

Date Published: 2026-06-24

Abstract:
Antenatal corticosteroids are widely used to accelerate fetal lung maturation in pregnancies at risk of preterm birth. However, a reliable non-invasive method to directly assess the fetal lung response to therapy in utero is lacking. Shear-wave elastography (SWE) has emerged as a potential imaging technique for evaluating fetal lung tissue properties. This retrospective observational study included 26 pregnancies between 24 and 34 weeks of gestation. Fetal lung and liver elasticity were assessed using two-dimensional SWE before maternal betamethasone administration, 1?min after treatment, and 24?h later. Fetal lung elasticity demonstrated a gestational age–dependent decrease, with significantly lower values at 32–34 weeks compared with earlier gestational ages. No significant change in lung elasticity was observed 1?min after corticosteroid administration. However, lung elasticity decreased significantly at 24?h (from 1.87?±?0.04 kPa to 1.72?±?0.04 kPa, p =?0.0005). Liver elasticity remained unchanged throughout the observation period. Fetal lung elasticity measured by SWE decreases within 24?h following antenatal betamethasone administration. These findings suggest that SWE may detect corticosteroid-associated changes in fetal lung mechanical properties in utero . Further studies are needed to determine the clinical relevance of this approach.

Introduction:
Antenatal corticosteroids are widely used to accelerate fetal lung maturation in pregnancies at risk of preterm birth. However, a reliable non-invasive method to directly assess the fetal lung response to therapy in utero is lacking. Shear-wave elastography (SWE) has emerged as a potential imaging technique for evaluating fetal lung tissue properties.

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