Patent ID: 8012091
Filing Date: 2011-09-06
Classification: A61B

Abstract:
1. A method for fetal weight estimation, comprising the following steps: a) ultrasonically measuring fetal biometric parameters for a plurality of sample cases; b) determining physiological and phenomenological pregnancy parameters for each sample case of said plurality of sample cases; c) determining a fetal weight for each of the sample cases by precision weighing at birth; d) creating a database of the sample cases in which each record associated to each known case comprises the fetal biometric parameters, the physiological and phenomenological pregnancy parameters and the fetal weight as determined at birth; e) generating mathematical prediction models from the database of the sample cases; f) ultrasonically measuring said fetal biometric parameters of a case under examination for which fetal weight is to be predicted; g) determining further physiological and phenomenological pregnancy parameters of the case under examination; h) predicting the fetal weight of the case under examination by using the mathematical prediction models generated in step d), wherein a multinormal probabilistic model is used as the mathematical model, said predicting step providing an estimation of a most probable fetal weight, as a multinormal probabilistic model maximizing value over all the fetal weights, wherein said multinormal probabilistic model is governed by the following function which provides a probability density of the measured fetal biometric parameters and one or more of the physiological and phenomenological pregnancy parameters, the probability density is conditioned by information relating to the physiological and phenomenological pregnancy parameters and the fetal weights of the sample cases: i) computing a plurality of probability curves by the multinormal probabilistic model for at least one component of the observation vector x and at least one of the physiological and phenomenological pregnancy parameters that form the components of the data vector w; j) after determining the plurality of probability curves for at least one of the one or more physiological and phenomenological pregnancy parameters, automatically correcting the parameter during estimation of the most probable fetal weight value for at least some or all of the ultrasound biometric parameters and at least one of the physiological and phenomenological pregnancy parameters; k) determining a set of most probable values of the ultrasound biometric parameters and at least one of the physiological and phenomenological pregnancy parameters; l) determining a set of deviations of the most probable values from the measured values of said ultrasound biometric parameters and at least one of the physiological and phenomenological pregnancy parameters, the deviations are expressed in terms of univariate probability of consistency with the most probable fetal weight; and m) displaying the probability curves, the most probable values and the deviations.