TY - EJOU AU - Song, Xue AU - Liu, Cun AU - Wang, Jingying AU - Yang, Xinglian AU - Li, Mingrui TI - Current Perspectives on Umbilical Cord Abnormalities Including Blood Flow Parameters Based on Ultrasound Observations T2 - Molecular \& Cellular Biomechanics PY - 2022 VL - 19 IS - 4 SN - 1556-5300 AB - The umbilical cord is a vital structure between the fetus and placenta for the growth and well-being of the fetus. Although the umbilical cord may be the only organ that dies at the beginning of life, it is one of the most important parts of the feta-placental unit and plays a role in determining how life begins. In general, the prenatal examination of the umbilical cord is limited to the observation of the number of vessels and the evaluation of umbilical artery blood flow parameters. Pathologists have done more research on the morphological characteristics of the umbilical cord and linked them to perinatal outcomes. The introduction of advanced imaging technology makes it possible to study the characteristics of fetal umbilical cord from early to late gestation. Many studies have shown that the changes of umbilical cord structure may be related to pathological conditions, such as preeclampsia, fetal growth restriction. Prenatal morphometric umbilical cord characteristics and arterial blood flow parameters in normal and pathologic conditions are discussed in this review. KW - Umbilical cord; morphology; blood flow; prenatal ultrasound; color doppler imaging DO - 10.32604/mcb.2022.026082