Measurement of fundal height as a screening test for fetal growth retardation.

Fundal heights were measured on 761 women in the course of their routine antenatal care. This information was assessed, alone and in combination with other variables such as previous obstetric history and smoking, for its utility in predicting growth retardation. The results were disappointing. By most criteria used for classification, approximately half of the growth retarded babies were classified as such while half were missed. False positive rates were unacceptably high. It is concluded that fundal height measurement is of little use as a screening test for growth retardation.