Short femur length was defined as length below the 10th percentile for gestational age and was considered isolated when both the estimated fetal weight and abdominal circumference were above the 10th percentile for gestational age. Short femur length was defined as length below the 10th percentile for gestational age and was considered isolated when both the estimated fetal weight and abdominal circumference were above the 10th percentile for gestational age. Isolated short femur length below the 5th percentile was also evaluated. A: Femur length or the length of the thighbone is an index of fetal growth in the uterus. In the last three months of pregnancy, the longer the bone, the longer is the length of the baby at birth. It is not an index of the final growth of the adult.
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What does small femur length mean?
A short femur is defined as a measurement below the 2.5 percentile for gestational age. This finding is typically identified on second trimester prenatal ultrasound, as femur measurements are part of the algorithm for pregnancy dating.
When should I worry about my short femur length?
When femur length is below the fifth percentile, parents may be advised about a number of potential atypical pregnancy outcomes. 2 A short femur length identified on ultrasound in the second or third trimester raises concern for certain conditions in the fetus or the pregnancy.
What causes short femur length?
In most cases, researchers suspect congenital short femur is caused by a disruption during early prenatal development, which can be caused randomly, or as a result of an outside force such as an infection or trauma.
What does short femur length mean in third trimester?
During the third trimester a very short femur may indicate a bone dysplasia and the work-up should be the same as in the second trimester. A short femur may correspond to dwarfism of late development, a growth-retarded foetus or constitutional shortness.
What is a short a femur used for?
A femur length that is shorter than expected has been used as a soft marker for certain genetic conditions, such as trisomy 21 (Down syndrome), trisomy 13 (Patau syndrome) and trisomy 18 (Edward’s syndrome).
What does a short femur length on ultrasound mean?
Measured from the blunt end of the bone to the shaft, the femur length is generally measured in millimeters. A short femur length finding on ultrasound may indicate the need for further testing to rule out certain conditions.
What happens if your femur length is too short?
Some studies have raised concerns about the sufficiency of the placenta to provide an adequate nutritional environment for fetuses with short femur lengths. Because of that, short femur length is linked to adverse pregnancy outcomes such as fetuses that are small for gestational age, babies born with low birth weight, and preterm birth. 4
Is femur length an index of growth during pregnancy?
Please advise. A: Femur length or the length of the thighbone is an index of fetal growth in the uterus. In the last three months of pregnancy, the longer the bone, the longer is the length of the baby at birth. It is not an index of the final growth of the adult.
