King's College London | Guy's and St Thomas' NHS Foundation Trust | British Heart Foundation

The PLACARD Study

Helping improve diagnosis and care in pregnancy by studying how the baby’s heart and placenta develop together.

Find out more

What is PLACARD?

PLACARD (the Placenta-Cardiac Imaging Study) is a research study focused on understanding how the placenta and a baby’s heart and brain develop and function during pregnancy. It brings together expertise in fetal imaging to study these systems as part of a single, connected process.

What does the study involve?

Taking part may include one or two additional ultrasound and MRI scan visits during pregnancy, alongside routine care. All scans use established hospital equipment. Some families may also be offered optional follow-up assessments for their baby after birth.

What do we hope to learn?

By studying pregnancies in more detail, we aim to identify early patterns that explain how changes in the placenta or heart affect development. This knowledge may help improve diagnosis, counselling, and care for families in future pregnancies.

300+

Pregnancies included across a range of gestations and clinical backgrounds.

1-4

Additional research MRI and/or ultrasound scans per participant

5 years

Total length of the project

Study Updates

Click here for the latest updates!

Our team

The PLACARD study is led by a multidisciplinary team of clinicians, scientists, and imaging specialists from King’s College London and Evelina London Children’s Hospital at Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust, supported by the British Heart Foundation.