Prediction of Birth Weight at Term: Validation of a Clinical Method in a Low Resource Setting

Cajethan Ife Emechebe; Charles Obinna Njoku; Jenkins Tobechukwu Ukaga; Edu Michael Eyong; Chinedu Chukwu

doi:doi:10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11

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Prediction of Birth Weight at Term: Validation of a Clinical Method in a Low Resource Setting

Cajethan Ife Emechebe, Charles Obinna Njoku, Jenkins Tobechukwu Ukaga, Edu Michael Eyong, Chinedu Chukwu

Published in Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics (Volume 4, Issue 4)

Received: 23 July 2016 Accepted: 5 August 2016 Published: 29 August 2016

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Abstract

Clinical and ultrasound measurement of fetal weight provides a non-invasive and precise way of obtaining information of fetal size. Both low birth weight and macrosomia are associated with increased risk of complications during labor and puerperium. The objective of this study was to determine the accuracy and error in predicting fetal weights in-utero using clinical and ultrasonographic methods of fetal weight estimations. This prospective study was carried out on 200 mothers with singleton term pregnancy admitted for delivery. Accuracy of birth weight estimation was determined by calculating the absolute percentage error and the ratio by percentage of estimate within 10% of actual birth weight. Result: The mean actual birth weight was 3,242 ± 508g. The mean absolute percentage errors of both clinical and ultrasound methods were 11.16% ± 9.48 and 9.036% ± 7.61 respectively and the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.205). The accuracy within 10% of actual birth weights were 69.5% and 72% for both clinical estimation of fetal weight and ultrasound respectively and the difference was not statistically significant (p= 0.755). In both normal fetal weight group and macrosomia, no significant difference was observed in their measure of accuracy. However, in the low birth weight group, ultrasound method was better in predicting the actual birth weight. Conclusion: Clinical method (Dare’s method) is comparable to Hadlock method of predicting birth weight at term. However, when low birth weight is suspected in low resource areas, ultrasound should be recommended for better prediction of fetal weight.

Published in	Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics (Volume 4, Issue 4)
DOI	10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11
Page(s)	19-24
Creative Commons	This is an Open Access article, distributed under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/), which permits unrestricted use, distribution and reproduction in any medium or format, provided the original work is properly cited.
Copyright	Copyright © The Author(s), 2016. Published by Science Publishing Group

Keywords

Fetal Weight, Ultrasound, Birth Weight, Hadlock Formula, Calabar, Nigeria

References

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APA Style

Cajethan Ife Emechebe, Charles Obinna Njoku, Jenkins Tobechukwu Ukaga, Edu Michael Eyong, Chinedu Chukwu. (2016). Prediction of Birth Weight at Term: Validation of a Clinical Method in a Low Resource Setting. Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics, 4(4), 19-24. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11

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ACS Style

Cajethan Ife Emechebe; Charles Obinna Njoku; Jenkins Tobechukwu Ukaga; Edu Michael Eyong; Chinedu Chukwu. Prediction of Birth Weight at Term: Validation of a Clinical Method in a Low Resource Setting. J. Gynecol. Obstet. 2016, 4(4), 19-24. doi: 10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11

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AMA Style

Cajethan Ife Emechebe, Charles Obinna Njoku, Jenkins Tobechukwu Ukaga, Edu Michael Eyong, Chinedu Chukwu. Prediction of Birth Weight at Term: Validation of a Clinical Method in a Low Resource Setting. J Gynecol Obstet. 2016;4(4):19-24. doi: 10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11

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@article{10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11,
  author = {Cajethan Ife Emechebe and Charles Obinna Njoku and Jenkins Tobechukwu Ukaga and Edu Michael Eyong and Chinedu Chukwu},
  title = {Prediction of Birth Weight at Term: Validation of a Clinical Method in a Low Resource Setting},
  journal = {Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics},
  volume = {4},
  number = {4},
  pages = {19-24},
  doi = {10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.jgo.20160404.11},
  abstract = {Clinical and ultrasound measurement of fetal weight provides a non-invasive and precise way of obtaining information of fetal size. Both low birth weight and macrosomia are associated with increased risk of complications during labor and puerperium. The objective of this study was to determine the accuracy and error in predicting fetal weights in-utero using clinical and ultrasonographic methods of fetal weight estimations. This prospective study was carried out on 200 mothers with singleton term pregnancy admitted for delivery. Accuracy of birth weight estimation was determined by calculating the absolute percentage error and the ratio by percentage of estimate within 10% of actual birth weight. Result: The mean actual birth weight was 3,242 ± 508g. The mean absolute percentage errors of both clinical and ultrasound methods were 11.16% ± 9.48 and 9.036% ± 7.61 respectively and the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.205). The accuracy within 10% of actual birth weights were 69.5% and 72% for both clinical estimation of fetal weight and ultrasound respectively and the difference was not statistically significant (p= 0.755). In both normal fetal weight group and macrosomia, no significant difference was observed in their measure of accuracy. However, in the low birth weight group, ultrasound method was better in predicting the actual birth weight. Conclusion: Clinical method (Dare’s method) is comparable to Hadlock method of predicting birth weight at term. However, when low birth weight is suspected in low resource areas, ultrasound should be recommended for better prediction of fetal weight.},
 year = {2016}
}

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TY - JOUR
T1 - Prediction of Birth Weight at Term: Validation of a Clinical Method in a Low Resource Setting
AU - Cajethan Ife Emechebe
AU - Charles Obinna Njoku
AU - Jenkins Tobechukwu Ukaga
AU - Edu Michael Eyong
AU - Chinedu Chukwu
Y1 - 2016/08/29
PY - 2016
N1 - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11
DO - 10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11
T2 - Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics
JF - Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics
JO - Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics
SP - 19
EP - 24
PB - Science Publishing Group
SN - 2376-7820
UR - https://doi.org/10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11
AB - Clinical and ultrasound measurement of fetal weight provides a non-invasive and precise way of obtaining information of fetal size. Both low birth weight and macrosomia are associated with increased risk of complications during labor and puerperium. The objective of this study was to determine the accuracy and error in predicting fetal weights in-utero using clinical and ultrasonographic methods of fetal weight estimations. This prospective study was carried out on 200 mothers with singleton term pregnancy admitted for delivery. Accuracy of birth weight estimation was determined by calculating the absolute percentage error and the ratio by percentage of estimate within 10% of actual birth weight. Result: The mean actual birth weight was 3,242 ± 508g. The mean absolute percentage errors of both clinical and ultrasound methods were 11.16% ± 9.48 and 9.036% ± 7.61 respectively and the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.205). The accuracy within 10% of actual birth weights were 69.5% and 72% for both clinical estimation of fetal weight and ultrasound respectively and the difference was not statistically significant (p= 0.755). In both normal fetal weight group and macrosomia, no significant difference was observed in their measure of accuracy. However, in the low birth weight group, ultrasound method was better in predicting the actual birth weight. Conclusion: Clinical method (Dare’s method) is comparable to Hadlock method of predicting birth weight at term. However, when low birth weight is suspected in low resource areas, ultrasound should be recommended for better prediction of fetal weight.
VL - 4
IS - 4
ER -

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Author Information

Cajethan Ife Emechebe

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH), Calabar, Nigeria
Charles Obinna Njoku

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH), Calabar, Nigeria
Jenkins Tobechukwu Ukaga

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH), Calabar, Nigeria
Edu Michael Eyong

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, University of Calabar Teaching Hospital (UCTH), Calabar, Nigeria
Chinedu Chukwu

Department of Radiology, University of Calabar Teaching Hospital, Calabar, Nigeria

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APA Style

Cajethan Ife Emechebe, Charles Obinna Njoku, Jenkins Tobechukwu Ukaga, Edu Michael Eyong, Chinedu Chukwu. (2016). Prediction of Birth Weight at Term: Validation of a Clinical Method in a Low Resource Setting. Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics, 4(4), 19-24. https://doi.org/10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11

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ACS Style

Cajethan Ife Emechebe; Charles Obinna Njoku; Jenkins Tobechukwu Ukaga; Edu Michael Eyong; Chinedu Chukwu. Prediction of Birth Weight at Term: Validation of a Clinical Method in a Low Resource Setting. J. Gynecol. Obstet. 2016, 4(4), 19-24. doi: 10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11

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AMA Style

Cajethan Ife Emechebe, Charles Obinna Njoku, Jenkins Tobechukwu Ukaga, Edu Michael Eyong, Chinedu Chukwu. Prediction of Birth Weight at Term: Validation of a Clinical Method in a Low Resource Setting. J Gynecol Obstet. 2016;4(4):19-24. doi: 10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11

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@article{10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11,
  author = {Cajethan Ife Emechebe and Charles Obinna Njoku and Jenkins Tobechukwu Ukaga and Edu Michael Eyong and Chinedu Chukwu},
  title = {Prediction of Birth Weight at Term: Validation of a Clinical Method in a Low Resource Setting},
  journal = {Journal of Gynecology and Obstetrics},
  volume = {4},
  number = {4},
  pages = {19-24},
  doi = {10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11},
  url = {https://doi.org/10.11648/j.jgo.20160404.11},
  eprint = {https://article.sciencepublishinggroup.com/pdf/10.11648.j.jgo.20160404.11},
  abstract = {Clinical and ultrasound measurement of fetal weight provides a non-invasive and precise way of obtaining information of fetal size. Both low birth weight and macrosomia are associated with increased risk of complications during labor and puerperium. The objective of this study was to determine the accuracy and error in predicting fetal weights in-utero using clinical and ultrasonographic methods of fetal weight estimations. This prospective study was carried out on 200 mothers with singleton term pregnancy admitted for delivery. Accuracy of birth weight estimation was determined by calculating the absolute percentage error and the ratio by percentage of estimate within 10% of actual birth weight. Result: The mean actual birth weight was 3,242 ± 508g. The mean absolute percentage errors of both clinical and ultrasound methods were 11.16% ± 9.48 and 9.036% ± 7.61 respectively and the difference was not statistically significant (p=0.205). The accuracy within 10% of actual birth weights were 69.5% and 72% for both clinical estimation of fetal weight and ultrasound respectively and the difference was not statistically significant (p= 0.755). In both normal fetal weight group and macrosomia, no significant difference was observed in their measure of accuracy. However, in the low birth weight group, ultrasound method was better in predicting the actual birth weight. Conclusion: Clinical method (Dare’s method) is comparable to Hadlock method of predicting birth weight at term. However, when low birth weight is suspected in low resource areas, ultrasound should be recommended for better prediction of fetal weight.},
 year = {2016}
}

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