FETAL BONE-AGE REVISITED - PROPOSAL OF A NEW RADIOGRAPHIC SCORE

In order to establish a fetal bone age score, the post-mortem skeletal radiographs of 85 selected normal fetuses aged from 15 to 41 weeks of gestation (WG) were analysed. Twenty-eight skeletal areas were select ed for which quantitative and/or qualitative criteria were defined, Ea ch new aspect was graded and statistically tested by the stepwise line ar regression method. Two modalities of scores of decreasing complexit y were then designed. The use of these two scores permitted the assess ment of the fetal age with r(2) values of 0.97 and 0.96 (standard erro r of estimation of 1.19 and 1.36 WG), Applied to 15 intrauterine growt h retardation (IUGR) fetuses, the age estimated by these scores was we ll correlated with the age obtained by extraosseous criteria of matura tion. This method is proposed as a tool for determining the fetal age during necropsy and could also be useful in US prenatal evaluation.