The aim of this study was to investigate the relationship between placental thickness
and estimated fetal weight in normal pregnant Nigerian women. Six hundred and fortyfive
Nigerian women with singleton pregnancies in the second and third trimesters were
studied by transabdominal ultrasound. Fetal weight was estimated by measurement of
biparietal diameter (BPD) and abdominal circumference (AC). Gestational age was estimated
by measuring the BPD and fetal femur length (FL). Placental thickness was measured
in a longitudinal section at the point of insertion of the umbilical cord. Results
showed that both placental thickness and estimated fetal weight increased in fairly
linear manner with gestational age. There were significant positive correlations between
placental thickness and estimated fetal weight in the second and third trimesters
(p< 0.05). Regression analysis yielded linear mathematical relationships between estimated
fetal weight and placental thickness in the second and third trimesters, but the marked
variations in fetal weights corresponding to particular placental thickness limit
the usefulness of this relationship.
Key-words:
Placental thickness - Estimated fetal weight - Ultrasound - Nigerian women.
