Estimation of gestational age of the fetus by measuring placental thickness

ABSTRACT

To determine the gestational age of fetus on ultrasound by measuring the placental thickness. Design: An observational, cross-sectional study. Place and Duration P.N.S. Shifa Hospital, Karachi between July 2003 to July 2004. Subject And The study included one hundred pregnant females. The gestational age was > 12 weeks. Examination was done by Aloka SSD 1400 with 3.5 MHz convex probe throughout. It was observed that the placental thickness increased from 16mm at 12 weeks of gestation to 39mm at 40 weeks. The measurement of the placental thickness is an important parameter for estimation of fetal age along with other parameters especially in the late mid trimester and early third trimester where the exact duration of pregnancy is not known