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Amniotic fluid index in normal pregnancy: a longitudinal study
S P Chauhan1, W E Roberts, J N Martin
1Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System, South Carolina, USA.
Objective:
This longitudinal study was undertaken to characterize the change in the amniotic fluid volume in normal pregnancy.
Methods:
Prospectively, patients with uncomplicated gestations underwent serial amniotic fluid index by a single sonographer.
Results:
Fifty-six patients underwent a total of 378 determinations of amniotic fluid volume (6.8 +/- 2.5 examinations per patient). The variation in mean amniotic fluid index between 24 and 40(+6) weeks was not significantly different (p = 0.381). Among the 42 patients who delivered at term there was no significant decrease in the amniotic fluid index between their first and last measurement (p = 0.86). However, in the 14 patients who delivered after 41 weeks, there was a significant decrease in the index over time (p = 0.04).
Conclusion:
The longitudinal study on amniotic fluid volume in normal pregnancy reveals that amniotic fluid index does not change significantly with gestational age.