{"status":"ok","message-type":"work","message-version":"1.0.0","message":{"indexed":{"date-parts":[[2026,9,13]],"date-time":"2026-09-13T04:47:12Z","timestamp":1789274832428,"version":"build-2803163510"},"reference-count":22,"publisher":"Wiley","issue":"12","license":[{"start":{"date-parts":[[2011,12,1]],"date-time":"2011-12-01T00:00:00Z","timestamp":1322697600000},"content-version":"vor","delay-in-days":0,"URL":"http:\/\/onlinelibrary.wiley.com\/termsAndConditions#vor"}],"content-domain":{"domain":["onlinelibrary.wiley.com"],"crossmark-restriction":true},"short-container-title":["J of Ultrasound Medicine"],"published-print":{"date-parts":[[2011,12]]},"abstract":"<jats:sec><jats:title>Objectives<\/jats:title><jats:p>The human chorionic gonadotropin (hCG) discriminatory level\u2014the maternal serum \u03b2\u2010hCG level above which a gestational sac should be consistently visible on sonography in a normal pregnancy\u2014has been reported to be 1000 to 2000 mIU\/mL for transvaginal sonography. We assessed whether a woman with a \u03b2\u2010hCG above 2000 mIU\/mL and no intrauterine fluid collection on transvaginal sonography can subsequently be found to have a live intrauterine gestation and, if so, what the prognosis is for the pregnancy.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Methods<\/jats:title><jats:p>We identified all women scanned between January 1, 2000, and December 31, 2010, who met the following criteria: serum \u03b2\u2010hCG testing and transvaginal sonography were performed on the same day; \u03b2\u2010hCG was positive and sonography showed no intrauterine fluid collection; and a live intrauterine pregnancy was subsequently documented. We tabulated the \u03b2\u2010hCG levels in these cases and assessed pregnancy outcome.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Results<\/jats:title><jats:p>A total of 202 patients met the inclusion criteria, including 162 (80.2%) who had \u03b2\u2010hCG levels below 1000 mIU\/mL on the day of the initial scan showing no intrauterine fluid collection, 19 (9.4%) with levels of 1000 to 1499, 12 (5.9%) 1500 to 1999, and 9 (4.5%) above 2000 mIU\/mL. There was no significant relationship between initial \u03b2\u2010hCG level and either first\u2010trimester outcome or final pregnancy outcome (<jats:italic>P<\/jats:italic> &gt; .05, logistic regression analysis and Fisher exact test). The highest \u03b2\u2010hCG was 6567 mIU\/mL, and the highest value that preceded a liveborn term baby was 4336 mIU\/mL.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec><jats:sec><jats:title>Conclusions<\/jats:title><jats:p>The hCG discriminatory level should not be used to determine the management of a hemodynamically stable patient with suspected ectopic pregnancy, if sonography demonstrates no findings of intrauterine or ectopic pregnancy.<\/jats:p><\/jats:sec>","DOI":"10.7863\/jum.2011.30.12.1637","type":"journal-article","created":{"date-parts":[[2017,1,10]],"date-time":"2017-01-10T00:20:51Z","timestamp":1484007651000},"page":"1637-1642","update-policy":"https:\/\/doi.org\/10.1002\/crossmark_policy","source":"Crossref","is-referenced-by-count":75,"title":["Further Evidence Against the Reliability of the Human Chorionic Gonadotropin Discriminatory Level"],"prefix":"10.7863","volume":"30","author":[{"given":"Peter 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