A prospective evaluation of fetal femur length as a predictor of gestational age.

Variability (+/- 2 SD) in prediction of fetal gestational age from ultrasonographic measurements of fetal femur length was evaluated prospectively in 287 fetuses between 18 and 42 weeks' gestation. Variability increased throughout pregnancy, ranging from +/- 11.6 days between 18 and 24 weeks to +/- 22.7 days in the last six weeks of pregnancy. These findings are comparable with variability in prediction of gestational age from biparietal diameter measurement between 18 and 42 weeks, which indicates that the femur length may serve as an adequate alternative for prediction of gestational age in cases in which the biparietal diameter cannot, for technical reasons, be obtained.