Development of Extrauterine Fetal Incubation System

点击翻译按钮获取中文摘要

Our previous study indicated that the oxygen consumption of an isolated goat fetus, incubated in an isothermic environment with umbilical A-V ECMO, is almost equal to that of fetuses in utero. However the exteriorized animals did not survive for more than 10 days. From observations of the fetal conditions during extrauterine fetal incubation (EUFI), fetal gross movement and water imbalance was strongly suspected as being the cause of circulatory deterioration during long-term incubation. We therefore hypothesized that if fetal movement were suppressed, long-term incubation of an immature fetus without circulatory deterioration would be possible. To test this hypothesis, we performed a series of EUFI experiments under a new protocol in which we administered a muscle relaxant to the fetus.From the results of the study, we have shown that total respiratory support with arteriovenous extracorporeal circulation is useful for the long-term incubation of premature goat fetuses in the EUFI system. Arteriovenous shunting has no fundamentally adverse effect on fetal survival. Maintenance of water homeostasis must be achieved for long-term incubation of isolated premature fetuses.