Relation of rate of urine production to oxygen tension in small-for-gestational-age fetuses.

Hourly fetal urine production rate was determined by real-time ultrasonography immediately before cordocentesis for blood gas analysis in 27 small-for-gestational-age fetuses at 20 to 37 weeks' gestation; in 14 cases there was associated oligohydramnios. The values were compared with those of 101 appropriate-for-gestational-age fetuses. The hourly fetal urine production rate was significantly lower in the small-for-gestational-age fetuses than in the appropriate-for-gestational-age fetuses. Furthermore, there was a significant correlation between the degree of decrease in urine production and both the degree of fetal hypoxemia and the degree of fetal smallness. There was no significant difference between the oligohydramnios and nonoligohydramnios groups in either the degree of decrease in urine production or the degree of fetal hypoxemia.