Fetal monitoring usually calls to mind a woman in bed with monitoring straps around her waist and several people staring at a machine that prints out the numbers of the contractions and the baby's heart beat. However, that is but one way to monitor baby during labor.
The American College of OB/GYNs states that low risk women do not need constant fetal monitoring. They also say that monitoring can just as effectively be done by a human being as a machine. They suggest a reactive strip upon arrival at the birth place or arrival of the attendant. This means that the baby is doing well and responding to the contractions with the appropriate accelerations in heart rate. Then they suggest that the baby be "checked" 15 minutes out of every hour during the first stage of labor and 5 minutes out of every 15 minutes during the second stage (pushing).
Types of Monitoring:
- Fetoscope or stethoscope
- Handheld Doppler
- Intermittent external monitoring
- Continuous external monitoring
- Continuous internal monitoring
It is critical that you discuss monitoring with your practitioner and address the issue in your birth plan. If you prefer to maintain your mobility then continuous monitoring will make that harder to achieve. You may not have even known that you had options.
For those who have a high risk situation or who develop complications during the monitoring period, a form of continuous monitoring will be implemented. The external monitor works by ultrasound and is less accurate than an internal monitor. There are increased risks with using the internal monitors, but they are more accurate. The increased risks include: increased risk of infection, fetal laceration from probe, etc. It is also important to note that the bag of waters must be broken to allow internal monitoring.
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