A study to evaluate gestational age with the help of placental thickness

Abstract

Background: To assess relationship of placental thickness with gestational age. Methods: The study was conducted on 754 normal antenatal patients, of all gestational ages attending the out patient department of Dhiraj hospital from October 2012 to March 2013. USG was done by using Philips HD 7 machine with a 3.75 MHz sector probe. After estimating the fetal age by CRL, BPD, HC, AC, and FL, the placental thickness with standard deviation was calculated for all gestational ages. Results: It was observed that the placental thickness gradually increased from 15 mm at 11 weeks of gestation to 36.3 mm at 39 weeks. From the 22nd week to the 35th week of gestation the placental thickness coincide almost exactly with the gestational age in weeks. Conclusion: Placental thickness is a good parameter for estimation of gestational age especially in the late second trimester and early third trimester.