ESTIMATION OF GESTATIONAL AGE BY USING FETAL KIDNEY LENGTH AND PLACENTAL THICKNESS
Authors: Satish A Venkata , Vasanthan S Ratna , Gaffoor Mohammed Ansari , Sivarajan Armel Arputha 
Published: December 2024

Background: As pregnancy progresses, the effectiveness of current methods for estimating gestational age diminishes.
Meanwhile, fetal kidney length and placental thickness typically increase linearly with advancing gestational age. This
observational study aims to explore whether fetal kidney length and placental thickness can serve as reliable indicators for estimating gestational
age in healthy singleton pregnancies. This was a prospective observational study in which 125 patie Methodology: nts who came for regular
antenatal checkup after 20weeks of gestation has undergone antenatal ultrasound examination were included on the basis of a predefined
inclusion and exclusion criteria. First gestational age estimation was done using fetal biometry (head circumference, biparietal diameter,
abdominal circumference and femur length). To measure fetal kidney length, the ultrasound transducer was first oriented longitudinally along
the fetal spine. A slight adjustment in angulation allowed visualization of the paravertebral plane, capturing the complete length of each fetal
kidney separately. Measurements were then averaged for accuracy. Placental thickness was assessed at its thickest point, typically near the
umbilical cord insertion site. The correlation between placental thickness and gestational age, and between fetal kidney length and gestational
age, was evaluated using biometric measurements and analyzed using Pearsons correlation coefficient. P value less than 0.05 was taken as
statistically significant. In our study, the fetal kidney length and placental thickness correlated Results: well with assigned gestational age. A
positive linear relationship of gestational age with fetal kidney length and placental thickness was found. Correlation of gestational age with fetal
kidney length and placental thickness was 0.966 and 0.966 respectively. In conclusion, the study's Conclusion: results confirm the efficacy of
using fetal kidney length (FKL) and placental thickness measurements as reliable indicators for estimating gestational age. These ultrasound
measurements have proven accurate in adverse sample, enhancing the potential for widespread application in prenatal care. By enabling precise
gestational age estimation, these biometric parameters can improve the timing of prenatal interventions, potentially reducing the risk of
premature births and optimizing neonatal outcomes. The findings highlight the importance of integrating these measurements into routine
prenatal screening protocols, suggesting that they could significantly enhance the quality and effectiveness of maternal and fetal health
management. Despite challenges such as measurement variability due to operator dependency and the limitations of a cross-sectional study
design, the study's impact is potentially transformative, particularly in settings where access to advanced prenatal care technologies is limited.
Moving forward, further research should focus on longitudinal studies to track these measurements over time and refine the methodology to
reduce variability and increase the reliability of these crucial prenatal assessments.