Morphometric Analysis based on length of Cervical enlargement of spinal cord with the gestational age in Indian Human foetuses

Abstract

Introduction : Morphological studies were performed on vertebral canal and spinal cord from time to time during prenatal and postnatal periods. Foetal spinal cord has been the focus of interest by a lot of scientists but morphometric information regarding cervical enlargement received little attention, though important for clinical applications. Morphometric readings of length of cervical enlargement in foetal spinal cord will help in determining the age of foetuses, which may be very useful in many medicolegal cases. Material and Methods : Foetuses without any congenital cranio-vertebral anomalies were selected for the study and divided into five groups on the basis of gestational age. Laminectomy was performed and the spinal cords from human foetuses were taken out and length of cervical enlargement was measured by Vernier calipers under standard conditions. Result and Conclusion : Significant increment in the length of cervical enlargement in foetal spinal cord was observed in successive adjacent groups from group I onwards. Maximum increment in the length of cervical enlargement in spinal cord was observed between groups II and III human foetuses.