title: Prenatal ultrasonographic fetal rib length measurement: correlation with gestational age.
abstract: The availability of normal data on fetal rib bone length would be of value in a variety of circumstances under which ultrasound examinations are performed. Fetal rib length measurements were obtained in 257 singleton fetuses in a prospective cross-sectional study. The study population consisted of pregnancies between 14 and 40 weeks with no evidence of growth disturbances, or structural or karyotypic abnormalities. Fetal rib length, as a function of gestational age, was expressed by the regression equation: RL = -0.5834 + 0.2030 (GA), where RL is the rib length in centimeters and GA the gestational age in weeks. The correlation was R = 0.94 (p < 0.0001). The normal limits of fetal rib length are defined, and a high correlation between fetal rib length, gestational age, and other standard determinants of fetal growth is demonstrated. Our results indicate that fetal rib length can be a useful adjunct in determining normal fetal growth and in the management of the pregnancy with fetal skeletal dysplasia.
authors.affiliation: Division of Maternal-Fetal Medicine, Eastern Virginia Medical School, Norfolk 23507, USA.
authors.forename: A Z
authors.initials: AZ
authors.lastname: Abuhamad
authors.forename: S J
authors.initials: SJ
authors.lastname: Sedule-Murphy
authors.forename: P
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kolm
authors.forename: H
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Youssef
authors.forename: S L
authors.initials: SL
authors.lastname: Warsof
authors.forename: A T
authors.initials: AT
authors.lastname: Evans
mesh_terms: D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D005333:Fetus / Q000033:anatomy & histology*; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D011446:Prospective Studies; D012016:Reference Values; D012272:Ribs / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging / Q000196:embryology*; D016216:Ultrasonography, Prenatal