The author found the literature to be backing in precise statements concerning the extent to which the liver and spleen project below the costal margin in infants and children. It was found that when measured at the end of exploration, the mean projection of the liver edge below the costal margin in the midclavicular line was approximately 2 cm in the newborn, 1.6 cm in the premature, 1.6 cm during the remainder of the first year, 1 cm from 1
to 10
years of age and 0.85 cm from 10
to 16
years. The spleen could be palpated in 13.5% of newborn infants, in 12.7% during the remainder of the first year, and in 7.2% of those 1
to 10
years of age.