Consensus Report on the Detailed Fetal Anatomic Ultrasound Examination

Consensus Report on the Detailed Fetal Anatomic Ultrasound ExaminationIndications, Components, and Qualifications

1. Joseph Wax, MD, Cochair⇑, 
2. Howard Minkoff, MD, 
3. Anthony Johnson, DO,
4. Beverly Coleman, 
5. Deborah Levine, MD, 
6. Andrew Helfgott, MD, Cochair,
7. Daniel O’Keeffe, MD, 
8. Charlotte Henningsen, MS, RT, RDMS, RVT and
9. Carol Benson, MD

1. Address correspondence to Joseph Wax, MD, MMC Ob/Gyn Associates, 887 Congress St, Suite 200, Portland, ME 04102 USA. E-mail: waxj@mmc.org

Initially developed for detailed ultrasound studies performed for pregnancies with increased risk of fetal anomalies, there has been little consistency in the application of Current Procedural Terminology (CPT) code 76811 (“ultrasound, pregnant uterus, real time with image documentation, maternal evaluation plus detailed fetal anatomic examination, transabdominal, single or first gestation”) since it was first included in the 2003 edition of CPT.1,2

On April 9, 2013, the American Institute of Ultrasound in Medicine (AIUM) and the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) hosted a meeting in New York, New York, to develop the appropriate indications for performing a detailed fetal anatomic ultrasound examination, the components of the examination, and the training required to interpret it. Participants included representatives from the AIUM, SMFM, American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), American College of Osteopathic Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOOG), American College of Radiology (ACR), Society of Diagnostic Medical Sonography (SDMS), and Society of Radiologists in Ultrasound (SRU).