How To Read an Ultrasound
 We have had quite the medical education during our pregnancy with Max. Most recently, we have begun to learn more about what all those numbers mean when we receive a report and for reference I’ve attached Max’s 10/11/2010 report here. As we wade through the medical jargon, we notice a variety of acronyms: BPD, OFD, HC, AC, FL, etc… as well as ratios such as FL/HC, HC/AC, FL/BPD, etc.. All of these measurements and ratios are used to determine the normal range of development and we are fortunate to learn that Max fits into every one. During our appointment with Dr. Dungy-Poythress, (who happens to be Tony Dungy’s sister) she was able to confidently tell us that everything looked fine within the abilities of the ultrasound technology. Â
The averages and percentiles seem to vary both with the source and age of the data used. I found this website very useful to understand exactly what the acronyms meant as well as some charts for averages/percentiles of the BPD, AC, and FL. You may read more about some of the other measurements here. One of the most interesting things you will notice if you look at both Max’s 10/08/2010 and 10/11/2010 ultrasound readings is the differences in measurements for the BPD, HC, AC, & FL. Some of them are close, but note that the BPD is more than 1/2 cm off. It appears that these readings flucutate a bit from tech to machine to office.
More good info here: