Reliability of fetal middle cerebral artery velocity measurements: a randomized controlled trial of sonographer training.

Objective: The purpose of this study was to determine the reliability of fetal middle cerebral artery (MCA) peak systolic velocity (PSV) measurements at a tertiary care center and to evaluate the effect of targeted training for sonographers.

Methods: Six sonographers were randomized to training modules for fetal MCA PSV or amniotic fluid volume (AFV) measurements. Six fetuses of uncomplicated pregnancies were selected for participation. Middle cerebral artery and AFV measurements were obtained before and after a training module. The intraobserver and interobserver variability (reliability) was calculated with intraclass correlation coefficients and was compared between groups.

Results: Administration of the MCA training module increased the number of technically adequate MCA images obtained (odds ratio, 3.95; 95% confidence interval, 1.07-14.65). The intraobserver and inter-observer variability for MCA measurements was significantly reduced after the targeted training module (P = .05).

Conclusions: The reliability of fetal MCA PSV measurements improved after a targeted training program.