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Artigos Originais
Curve of fundal height measurements according to gestation age among low-risk pregnant women
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(1):3-9
06-19-2006
Summary
Artigos OriginaisCurve of fundal height measurements according to gestation age among low-risk pregnant women
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2006;28(1):3-9
06-19-2006DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032006000100002
Views63See morePURPOSE: to build a curve of fundal height according to gestational age among low-risk pregnant women and to compare it with the official standards used in Brazil. METHODS: a prospective observational study was carried out. A sample of 227 low-risk pregnant women with gestational age from 13 to 39 weeks was followed-up in the prenatal care sector of two public health services from João Pessoa, PB. Women with a known gestational age, a single live fetus, without malformation, with no known maternal-fetal pathological condition that could possibly affect fetal growth, with a normal body weight, and non-smokers were included in the study. Their fundal height was measured in a standard way, after a previous ultrasound done to confirm the gestational age. The same investigator performed 1206 measurements and each woman had a mean of 5.3 measurements. Statistical tests were performed with a significance level of 5%. Tables and graphs of fundal height were built according to the gestational age with the 10th, 50th and 90th percentiles. RESULTS: the values of percentiles 10, 50 and 90 of fundal height in each gestational age allowed the construction of a pattern curve of fundal height by gestational age among low-risk pregnant women. A clear visual difference was observed between this new and the official fundal height curve. Statistical analyses showed significant differences between them from the 19th week on. CONCLUSION: the results suggest different normal fundal height and fetal growth patterns among low-risk pregnant women on prenatal assistance compared to the used standard curve, thus with different performances when used for diagnosing fetal growth deviations. Future studies should validate the current fundal height curve by gestational age in order to possibly use it as a reference pattern.
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Trabalhos Originais
Ultrasonographic Evaluation of Fetal Growth with the use of the Transverse Cerebellar Diameter
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2000;22(5):281-286
01-04-2000
Summary
Trabalhos OriginaisUltrasonographic Evaluation of Fetal Growth with the use of the Transverse Cerebellar Diameter
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2000;22(5):281-286
01-04-2000DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032000000500005
Views65See morePurpose: to evaluate the effectiveness of the transverse cerebellar diameter (TCD), by ultrasonography, in the evolution of the fetal growth, and to relate it to gestational age, biparietal diameter (BPD), head circumference (HC), abdominal circumference (AC) and femur length (FL). Method: a prospective and longitudinal study was performed on 254 pregnant women considered of low risk, with a gestational age from 20 to 40 weeks. Only 55 pregnant women were included in the study, according to inclusion and exclusion criteria. All the examinations, 217 ultrasonographic evaluations, were done by the author (LN), at least three and at most six examinations for each pregnant woman being accomplished at an interval of one to five weeks. Normality patterns were established between the 10 and 90 percentiles for each gestational age and confirmed postnatally. Results: the transverse cerebellar diameter presented a good correlation with the gestational age either as a dependent variable (R² = 0.90) or as an independent variable (R² = 0.92). A significant relationship was found in the evaluation of the fetal growth between the TCD and the several fetal parameters: BPD and HC (R² = 0.92), FL (R² = 0.90) and AC (R² = 0.89). Conclusions: the transverse cerebellar diameter is a parameter that should be used in the follow-up of development and of fetal growth because of the ascending pattern of its growth curve. Any up- or downward alteration in the growth curve can be useful for the detection of deviations of fetal growth.
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Trabalhos Originais
Proposal of a New Uterine Height Growth Curve for Pregnancies between 20 and 42 Weeks
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2001;23(4):235-241
06-27-2001
Summary
Trabalhos OriginaisProposal of a New Uterine Height Growth Curve for Pregnancies between 20 and 42 Weeks
Revista Brasileira de Ginecologia e Obstetrícia. 2001;23(4):235-241
06-27-2001DOI 10.1590/S0100-72032001000400006
Views75See morePurpose: to create a uterine height growth curve, according to gestational age, to verify differences among the existing curves and to evaluate the influence of color, parity and maternal weight on the variation of uterine height. Methods: during the period from July 1997 to July 1999, 100 normal pregnant women were submitted to uterine height measurements between the 20th and 42nd week of gestation. All the pregnant women had ultrasonically confirmed gestational age. A total of 726 measurements of uterine height were carried out by the same examiner, using a metric tape from the upper border of the symphysis pubis to the fundus uteri. Results: curves and tables of uterine height according to gestational age were obtained. The average uterine height growth was 0.7 cm/week. The study revealed different average uterine height values in relation to other uterine height growth curves. No statistically significant variations were found between the distributions of uterine heights according to color, parity and weight. Conclusion: the construction of a methodologically accepted uterine height growth curve aimed to detect, as a clinical method, the fetal growth disturbances. This should be analyzed in a posterior study.