title: Area of Wharton's jelly as an estimate of the thickness of the umbilical cord and its relationship with estimated fetal weight.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  To build a reference curve for the area of Wharton's jelly (WJ) in low-risk pregnancies from 13 to 40 weeks and to assess its relationship with estimated fetal weight (EFW).
  
  
  METHODS
  2,189 low-risk pregnancies had the area of WJ estimated by ultrasound and the 10th, 50th and 90th percentiles calculated using a third-degree polynomial regression procedure. EFW by ultrasound was correlated with the measurement of the area of WJ.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The area of WJ increased according to gestational age (R² = 0.64), stabilizing from the 32nd week onwards. There was a significant linear correlation between area of WJ and EFW up to 26 weeks (R = 0.782) and after that 5t remained practically constant (R = 0.047).
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The area of WJ increases according to gestational age, with a trend to stabilize at around 32 weeks of gestation. It is also linearly correlated with EFW only up to 26 weeks of gestation.
authors: Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, School of Medical Sciences, Universidade Estadual de Campinas-UNICAMP, Campinas, São Paulo, Brazil.
authors: Cristiane
authors: C
authors: Barbieri
authors: Jose G
authors: JG
authors: Cecatti
authors: Fernanda G
authors: FG
authors: Surita
authors: Maria L
authors: ML
authors: Costa
authors: Emilio F
authors: EF
authors: Marussi
authors: Jose V
authors: JV
authors: Costa
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D003430:Cross-Sectional Studies; D005260:Female; D047109:Fetal Development / Q000502:physiology; D020567:Fetal Weight / Q000502:physiology*; D005865:Gestational Age; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D012016:Reference Values; D016216:Ultrasonography, Prenatal / Q000379:methods; D014470:Umbilical Cord / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D059631:Wharton Jelly / Q000033:anatomy & histology* / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging