{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,10,11]],"date-time":"2026-10-11T11:35:42Z","timestamp":1791718542389,"version":"4.3.4"},"reference-count":32,"publisher":"MDPI AG","issue":"5","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,28]],"date-time":"2026-02-28T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1772236800000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"https:\/\/creativecommons.org\/licenses\/by\/4.0\/"}],"content-domain":{"domain":[],"crossmark-restriction":false},"short-container-title":["JCM"],"abstract":"<jats:p>Objectives: To develop and prospectively validate a predictive model to estimate the fetal postmortem interval (PMI) using three-dimensional postmortem ultrasound (3D PM-US) measurements of corneal and ocular volumes. Methods: Single-center study including fetuses \u2265 20 weeks\u2019 gestation with known time of death after feticide. A retrospective training cohort (n = 63; November 2022\u2013July 2023) and a prospective validation cohort (n = 28; February\u2013August 2025) were used. Corneal and ocular volumes were measured using the VOCAL\u2122 rotation multiplanar technique; the cornea-to-eyeball volume ratio was calculated for each case. Automated machine learning (AutoML) was used to develop and validate a gradient boosting machine (GBM) model. Model performance was evaluated using the root mean squared error (RMSE), mean absolute error (MAE), and coefficient of determination (R2). Results: Ninety-four fetuses were included; three were excluded (two for extreme death\u2013US intervals of 165 and 166 h; one for open eyelids). Median gestational age was 29.3 weeks (IQR 27.2\u201332.9); median birthweight was 1325 g (IQR 980\u20131880). The cornea-to-eyeball volume ratio was an independent predictor of PMI (p &lt; 0.001). The GBM model explained 91% of the variance in the training cohort (R2 = 0.91, RMSE = 11.49 h, MAE = 8.45 h) and 75% in the validation cohort (R2 = 0.75, RMSE = 18.32 h, MAE = 14.49 h), demonstrating strong predictive accuracy and minimal overfitting. Variable importance analysis confirmed the cornea-to-eyeball ratio as the most influential and biologically plausible predictor of PMI. A Shiny web application was developed to facilitate clinical implementation. Conclusions: 3D PM-US measurements of the fetal cornea and eyeball can reliably and quantitatively estimate the PMI with good predictive accuracy using a GBM model. Multicenter studies are required to further refine the model, enable external validation, and determine its clinical and forensic utility.<\/jats:p>","DOI":"10.3390\/jcm15051865","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2026,3,2]],"date-time":"2026-03-02T10:24:34Z","timestamp":1772447074000},"page":"1865","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.3390\/mdpi_crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":1,"title":["Three-Dimensional Postmortem Ultrasound of the Fetal Corneal Volume to Estimate Postmortem Interval"],"prefix":"10.3390","volume":"15","author":[{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0001-1095-9165","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Patricia","family":"Ibarra Vilar","sequence":"first","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital Brugmann, Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles, Place A. Van Gehuchten 4, 1020 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0001-5251-6023","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Dominique A.","family":"Badr","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital Brugmann, Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles, Place A. Van Gehuchten 4, 1020 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-6625-7250","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Laura","family":"De Luca","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital Brugmann, Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles, Place A. Van Gehuchten 4, 1020 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0009-0000-0901-6621","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Teresa","family":"Cos Sanchez","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital Brugmann, Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles, Place A. Van Gehuchten 4, 1020 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"given":"Jacques C.","family":"Jani","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital Brugmann, Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles, Place A. Van Gehuchten 4, 1020 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]},{"ORCID":"https:\/\/orcid.org\/0000-0002-1942-1652","authenticated-orcid":false,"given":"Xin","family":"Kang","sequence":"additional","affiliation":[{"name":"Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University Hospital Brugmann, Universit\u00e9 Libre de Bruxelles, Place A. Van Gehuchten 4, 1020 Brussels, Belgium"}],"role":[{"vocabulary":"crossref","role":"author"}]}],"member":"1968","published-online":{"date-parts":[[2026,2,28]]},"reference":[{"key":"ref_1","unstructured":"World Health Organization (2021, January 06). Stillbirth. 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