More than a century and a half after the standard method of predicting a woman's due date was established, a new theory provides more accurate prediction and also identifies those at high risk for preterm delivery. The Mittendorf-Williams Rule was developed using a new theory to predict length of gestation and the risk for preterm birth in singleton pregnancies. The computer model uses sixteen significant factors such as maternal age, pre-pregnancy weight, race, college education, alcohol and coffee use, hypertension, and other medical conditions to compute a womans due date and determine if she is at high risk for giving birth sooner than 37 weeks gestation. P.H., assistant professor and director of health studies in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at the University of Chicago Medical Center, and Michelle A. Williams, Sc.D., epidemiologist at the University of Washington .
Few women deliver exactly on their due date.
A prospective study comparing the Mittendorf-Williams Rule found it to be twice as accurate as Naegele's rule in predicting gestation. More importantly, the software can predict the likelihood of preterm delivery, which affects 400,000 births annually in the United States. By identifying these women we may be able to lower the infant mortality rate by intensifying a woman's prenatal care, and medically manage patients differently based on this new information. S. Maryland Avenue, Chicago, IL 60637. Proceeds will benefit research and patient care initiatives at Chicago Lying-in Hospital at the University of Chicago Medical Center.