Overview
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You have already learned how to assess fetal lie. This is important because measurement depends on accurate scanning to produce the optimum section through the head to allow us to demonstrate the bony bulges at the side of the head - the parietal eminences (see Fig 1 and Fig 2).
The axial plane through the fetal head is used for measurement of normal parameters. It is important that you establish a reliable technique to produce this scan plane in order to ensure accuracy of measurement.
| Fig 1 The fetal skull seen from the back, the side and from the top |
| Fig 2 Long axis view of fetus demonstrating head and body. The baby is lying on its side relative to the ultrasound beam. The arrows point to the parietal eminences of the fetal skull |
| Fig 3 Axial plane through the fetal head |