Three Dimensional Ultrasound In The Assessement Of Normal Fetal Brain Volume And Its Ventricular System

Ultrasound examination and measurement of fetal biometry has become an integral part of modern obstetric care. These measurements can serve for dating gestation and for assessment of fetal growth.Sonography is also the best and the most used tool to study and understand the anatomy, pathology and developmental changes of the fetal central nervous system. Fetal brain volume is very important in the evaluation of the fetal growth as well as the central nervous system .The sonographic examination of the cerebral ventricles of a fetus is fundamental to the detection and evaluation of abnormalities of the central nervous system (CNS) and can be an important indicator of more widespread dysmorphogeniesis.The objective of this study is to construct reference charts for fetal brain volume and its correlation with other fetal parameters as BPD, HC and FL. The width of the lateral ventricle and its correlation with the gestational age also included within this study.This work was carried out in Obstetrics and Gynecology Department, Zagazig University Hospital, Egypt, during the period from 8/2009 to 9/2011. Two hudred and fifty women were included within the study. They had a singleton pregnancy between the 20th and the 40th week, a valid last menstrual period (LMP) date was well known and a regular menstrual cycle of close to 28 days was known.Biparietal diameter (BPD) was measured from the outer margin of the proximal skull table to the inner margin of the distal skull table. The head circumference (HC) was measured by placing the calipers over the landmarks for BPD and fitting a computer-generated ellipse to include the.