Geoff Charles-Edwards1,2, Wajanat Jan1, Meekai To1, Darryl Maxwell1, Stephen Keevil1,2, Richard Robinson1
1Guy's & St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust, London, UK; 2King's College London, London, UK
Magnetic resonance spectroscopy (MRS) has been used to measure cerebral lactate levels in a range of human populations, from elderly stroke patients to pre-term neonates. The aim of this study was to assess the feasibility of extending lactate detection and quantification to the fetal brain. A peak consistent with lactate was measured and quantified in a number of patients at high risk of fetal hypoxia. To our knowledge this is the first MRS study to measure and quantify lactate in the human fetal brain. Fetal MRS may provide a valuable direct and non-invasive assessment of fetal hypoxia.