Fetal size and growth in Bangladeshi pregnancies.

A longitudinal study of 20 uncomplicated pregnancies in Bangladeshi women was undertaken. Fetal growth was investigated by serial ultrasound scans performed between 26 and 38 weeks of pregnancy. Repeated measurements of abdominal circumference and estimates of fetal weight were best described by a log quadratic equation. The coefficients were not significantly different from those obtained from a previously reported study of fetal growth in 67 uncomplicated pregnancies with healthy outcomes in white Anglo-Saxon women. Further comparison between the two groups showed that the mean abdominal circumference and estimates of fetal weight of the Bangladeshi fetuses were smaller at 28, 32 and 36 weeks' gestation. These results suggest that, although Bangladeshi fetuses appear to be smaller than Anglo-Saxon fetuses, they grow at a similar rate during the third trimester.