Non-immunologic hydrops fetalis: a review of 27 cases

SUMMARY Twenty seven babies with severe non-haemolytic hydrops fetalis were born during a 71 year period (1/1400 total births). Thirteen were live born and admitted to the intensive care nursery, but only three survived. The survivors differed from those live born infants who died in the neonatal period in that the cause of the hydrops was discovered antenatally, their serum con-centrations of total protein and albumin were normal, and they had no structural anomaly. A scheme of investigation of the severely hydropic fetus in the antenatal period is outlined and the role of active obstetric management is evaluated. Rhesus haemolytic disease is no longer the common-est cause of hydrops fetalis in the United Kingdom. Increasing attention is now focused on the miscel-laneous group of non-haemolytic hydrops fetalis in which the prognosis remains very poor. We describe the outcome in 27 in-born infants with severe non-haemolytic fetal hydrops and, in the light of the findings in these infants and in other publishe