To analyze the quality of cervical ultrasound during pregnancy among ultrasound physicians with different working experience and professional training.

All 624 cervical ultrasound reports [transperineal ultrasound (TPU) and transvaginal ultrasound (TVU)] from January 1 to December 31, 2019 at Peking Union Medical College Hospital were derived from the ultrasound medical imaging workstation. The examiners were divided into first-year residents (G1), second- or third-year residents (G2), and professional doctors (G3). According to the guidelines published by the Society of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists of Canada Maternal-Fetal Medicine Committee, the above reports were evaluated and classified as true or false by two ultrasound physicians with more than 10 years of experience. Chi-square test or Fisher's test was used to compare the difference between groups.

A total of 624 cervical examinations were recruited, 507 (81.2%, 507/624) by TPU and 117 (18.8%, 117/624) by TVU. The number of physicians in G1, G2, and G3 was 16, 33, and 13, respectively. By TPU, the total number of reports in G1, G2, and G3 was 90, 326, and 91, and the accuracy was 74.4% (67/90), 85.9% (280/326), and 86.8% (79/91), respectively; the difference between G1 and G2 and between G1 and G3 was significant (χ²=6.678, P=0.010; χ²=4.438, P=0.035), but the difference between G2 and G3 was not significant (P＞0.05). By TVU, the total number of reports in G1+G2 and G3 was 44 and 73, and the accuracy was 75.0% (33/44) and 91.8% (67/73), respectively; the difference was significant (χ²=6.225, P=0.013). The difference between TPU and TVU was not significant (P＞0.05).

The accuracy of TVU among physicians in the professional group is higher, and the accuracy of TPU increases with the increase of seniority. Case accumulation and standardized professional training are effective ways to improve pregnant cervical ultrasonography.