GotoMyDoc - Pregnancy - Checking Baby's Well Being

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Checking your baby's well being

Fetal Monitoring

When it comes time for delivery, there are a number of methods used to monitor the baby’s status. Depending upon the amount of risk involved in the pregnancy, these measures can be more or less invasive. The higher the risk in the pregnancy, the more important it is to get an accurate assessment and, therefore, the more invasive the method.

External Fetal Monitoring

In most cases this can be used to assess the fetal heart rate. External Fetal Monitoring combines the use of a tocodynamometer (used to measure contractions) and an ultrasound transducer (used to monitor the fetal heart rate) which are placed on the mother’s abdomen. This method is good for timing contractions but can be limited if the mother is overweight.

Internal Fetal Monitoring

This is preferred when the intensity or strength of contraction needs to be monitored or if external fetal monitoring is inadequate. This may be the case if labor is not progressing, or if the mother has previously had a cesarean section and is now having a vaginal delivery. In this technique, the membranes must be ruptured and an Intrauterine Pressure Catheter is placed between the baby and the uterine wall.

Fetal Scalp Electrodes

This can be used to more accurately monitor heart rate. This can be necessary when the heart rate has decelerations (meaning that the fetal heart rate falls, instead of rising) with contractions and may be a sign of fetal distress. This is accomplished by attaching a small sensor to the baby’s scalp. The risks associated with the more invasive methods are generally low but may include increased risk of maternal infection and fetal scalp abscess (area of infection of the scalp). It is important to remember that the more invasive methods are generally reserved for high-risk deliveries where the need for accurate monitoring outweighs the risk of the procedure.