Fundal height in normal pregnant Nigerian women: Anthropometric gravidogram

Abstract

Fundal height measurements in centimeters (FH) have always been an objective method of evaluating fetal growth in pregnancy. The popular Mcdonald's rule refers mainly to caucasions unfortunately. Since FH may actually vary in an anthropological sense it was considered necessary to apply Mcdonald's rule to African subjects. Pregnant Nigerian women were studied to observe how their fundal height values compared with those obtained for caucasian women in western communities. A gravidogram was derived for the 10th, 50th and 90th centiles. Values outside the range of 10-90th centiles are to be used for the prediction of small-for-dates and large-for-dates babies accordingly. Prediction formulae for the various centiles derived from regression analysis were obtained and their usefulness in clinical anthropological practice using fundal height measurement highlighted. A simple universal formula for African subjects is presented. Normal values of pregnant women for somatotype, height, and abdominal girth are also presented. The result of this survey demonstrates a significant difference in fundal height values of African women from those of the hitherto utilized standards derived from the study of caucasian women, especially in early pregnancy. This report suggests an early intra-uterine growth retardation in the African pregnancies which is corrected in the third trimester.

Last menstrual period provides the best estimate of gestation length for women in rural Guatemala

“…We were concerned that an external reference may introduce error in the estimation of gestational age based on SFH. The need for internal SFH references has been assessed in rural areas of developing countries 23,24 with mixed conclusions. We found that SFH in this sample was very small compared with published references 13,23 , 24 .…”

“…The need for internal SFH references has been assessed in rural areas of developing countries 23,24 with mixed conclusions. We found that SFH in this sample was very small compared with published references 13,23 , 24 . Whether this difference is due to technical error or a systematically smaller SFH in this population is not known.…”

Dating gestational age by last menstrual period, symphysis‐fundal height, and ultrasound in urban Pakistan

“…The SFH may be used after 12 weeks of gestation but its accuracy may be diminished by a multiple pregnancy, maternal size, intrauterine growth restriction, fetal position, and other maternal or fetal characteristics [9, 10, 11, 12]. Moreover, due to the observed variations in SFH across populations, local standards are required for optimal pregnancy dating using SFH [13, 14, 15, 16, 17]. …”

International standards for symphysis-fundal height based on serial measurements from the Fetal Growth Longitudinal Study of the INTERGROWTH-21stProject: prospective cohort study in eight countries

“…In fact, we believe that at least 21 different, locally derived SFH charts are currently being used in clinical practice worldwide 89 10 11 12 13 14 15 16 17 18 19 20 21 22 23 24 25 26 27 28 29…”