FIELDS, GRAPHS, AND OTHER DATA ON FETAL GROWTH. 



63 



Among the total number of 4,530 abstracted cases, there were 73 instances of multiple 

 pregnancy which were composed of 71 cases or 1.6 per cent of twins and two cases or 0.04 

 per cent of triplets. 



The graphs in figure 1 show the cases of a certain length in centimeter intervals from a 

 length of 39 to 59 cm. inclusive in a series of 2,554 cases, from the Department of Obstetrics 

 of the Johns Hopkins Hospital and from Hasse's 935 cases. The extremely close corre- 

 spondence between the forms of these curves is striking and the only essential difference, 

 aside from the great fluctuation in the number of fetuses in the 45 to 48 cm. lengths of Hasse's 

 curve, which is undoubtedly due to the comparatively small number of cases, is that by 





290 300 310 320 330 3 



Length in centimeters 



Fig. 1. 



Graphs illustrating the number of<:ases for each centimeter's 

 length from 39 to 59 cm. inclusive. Fractions of a cen- 

 timeter, which were few, were counted with the nearest 

 integer, the half centimeters going with the lower figure. 

 Meyer 2,554 cases, Hasse 935 cases. 



Graphs showing the number of deliveries in each 10-day 

 interval from 150 to 340 days. Meyer 2,440 cases, Has- 

 ler 651 cases. 



far the largest percentage of Hasse's cases were 50 cm. long instead of 49 cm. as in my series. 

 The different location of the mode in my series is very evidently due to the fact that half 

 of the cases from Professor Williams' clinic were negroes, and also to the presence of more 

 immature cases. That is, 355 or 37.9 per cent of Hasse's cases are 50 cm. long, but only the 

 same number of the present series of 2,311 cases, or 15.1 per cent, are 49 cm. long. 1 



On comparing these curves with those in figure 3, which are based on practically the 

 identical material, the very sharp ascent to and descent from the maximum in the frequency 

 curves for length and the gradual ascent to, and the still more gradual descent from, the 

 maximum in the weight curves are very striking. Moreover, only 129, or 13.8 per cent, 



'Curves based on percentages would have been preferable; nevertheless it hardly seemed of sufficient consequence. 



