Clinical and sonographic assessment of liver size in normal Chinese neonates

Liver size and midclavicular line were measured by clinical and sonographic methods in 145 normal Chinese neonates with gestational ages of 34-42 weeks. The liver span, measured by clinical methods with percussion and percussion/palpation methods, correlated well with that measured by sonography (r = 0.73 and r = 0.76, respectively) for the entire sample. The liver spans (mean +/- SD) obtained by sonography were 4.24 +/- 0.63 cm and 4.58 +/- 0.56 cm in the preterm and term neonates, respectively. The liver span (sonography) and the distance of the liver edge below the right costal margin were weakly related in the term neonates (r = 0.36), but unrelated in the preterm neonates. We conclude that the liver span is a better estimate of liver size than the distance below the right coastal margin in normal neonates. We also found that the mean liver span is approximately 1 cm smaller in Chinese neonates than in Western neonates.