Ultrasonographic Comparative Study of Abdominal Circumference in Fetuses of North Indian Women

Sonography has transformed the antenatal care of pregnant women and it is regarded as a well-established method of dating pregnancy and monitoring fetal growth. This study was performed in the department of Anatomy, Obstetrics & Gynaecology and Radiology of M. L. N. Medical College and associated hospitals of Allahabad. We included 1436 uncomplicated singleton pregnant women. Abdominal circumference was measured in a plane perpendicular to the fetal spine. Umbilical vein used as a landmark. Measurements were taken by plane geometry around the outline of the abdominal fetal skin. For each gestational age (GA), abdominal circumference (AC) measurements, mean abdominal circumference and standard deviation (SD) were tabulated and the mean abdominal circumference measurement of present study was statistically compared with that of published data by Hadlock et al., J.C. Smulian et al., Kurmanavicius et al, Snijder &Nicoloids and Pam Loughna et al. Unpaired t-test was performed with Shahida Zaidi et al (Pakistan), Piyamas et al. (Thailand) and with Hadlock et al. London (UK) normogram. The significant differences present in both second and third trimester. Linear regression analysis was selected to prepare a population specific AC table for every respective GA. Linear regression equation: AC=-51.5102+9.99023GA. This difference is due to genetic, racial, inadequate nutrition and socioeconomic factors. These emphasize the need for a locally generated fetal growth reference along with prospective data on obstetric and perinatal outcomes to enable the development of better clinical guidelines.