Comparison of anthropometric measurements of foetuses in normal, gestational diabetes-affected, and hypertensive pregnancies

OBJECTIVES: Foetal anthropometry evaluates and monitors foetal development and assesses the nutritional state of the developing foetus. It is a vital indicator of the normalcy of foetal development in-utero. The most relevant parameters in foetal anthropometry are biparietal diameter (BPD), head circumference (HC), abdominal circumference (AC), and femur length (FL). Gestational diabetes mellitus (GDM) and gestational hypertension (GHTN) are the major reasons for variations in foetal development. In this study, we compare foetal anthropometric measurements taken using ultrasounds of normal, gestational diabetes-affected, and hypertensive pregnancies. METHOD: In this study, a total of 615 anomaly scans were done between the gestational ages of 18–22 weeks from 2016 to 2018. The patients’ data were collected from the register of the anomaly scanning room. The foetal anthropometric parameters measured BPD, HC, AC, and FL. RESULTS: All the measurements including BPD, HC, and AC were lower in foetuses affected by GHTN, and all the measurements, including FL, were higher in foetuses affected by GDM than in normal pregnancies. A post-hoc analysis using Tukey's test showed that each foetal parameter had a significant correlation with pregnancy-related co-morbidities (p-value < 0.05). CONCLUSION: It is clear from our study that the foetuses of mothers with GDM showed a consistent variation of 10 mm above the normal average in terms of the BPD, HC, AC, and FL measurements. The GHTN-affected foetuses had averages that were lower than normal for BPD, HC, and AC.