Fetal Heart Rate Responses to Maternal Sleep-Disordered Breathing

Abstract

(Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2023;228(4):459.e1–459.e8) The physical changes inherent in pregnancy can amplify underlying comorbidities. One common problem worsened in pregnancy is sleep-disordered breathing. Sleep-disordered breathing has been investigated in relation to pregnancy and found to have a host of negative outcomes associated with it, including gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, preterm delivery, and stillbirth. Risk factors for sleep-disordered breathing often overlap with risk factors for other pregnancy complications, and thus relationships can be difficult to characterize. One area needing investigation is the effect of sleep-disordered breathing on fetal heart rate (FHR), which is an indicator of wellbeing during pregnancy. This study was designed to examine the FHR response to sleep-disordered breathing in pregnant women with obesity. The authors hypothesized that apnea or hypopnea would elicit a detectable response in FHR that would be potentiated in women with more severe symptoms.