Construction of a local standard symphysis fundal height curves for monitoring intrauterine fetal growth.

The aim of the present study was to construct standard symphysis fundal height percentile curves to be used as a reference chart in monitoring fetal growth. The construction was based on 1185 observations (symphysis fundal height measured to the nearest 0.5 cm by a malleable elastic tape) obtained from follow up of 105 cases of healthy pregnant women who were: sure of date of their last menstrual period, confirmed by early dating scan "before 20th gestational week", experienced a very strict normal course of pregnancy, giving birth to normal term newborn with appropriate weight for gestational age and sex. The selection of the study sample went through several screening levels starting by 4088 cases and ending by 105 cases. The measurements were taken biweekly from the 18th week of gestation to delivery "37-42 weeks of gestation." Tenth, 25th, 50th, 75th, 90th and 95th percentiles were calculated and represented graphically. Mean, mean-1 SD, mean-2 SD, mean +1 SD, mean + 2 SD were also calculated and represented graphically. The curve of best fit was determined by polynominal regression. The resulted percentile curves and mean values were found to be comparable to those in both developed and developing countries. It was recommended to incorporate the reference charts of symphysis fundal height into the maternity services after using it in routine antenatal examination for large number of cases and establishing its sensitivity and specificity.