Intrapartum Fetal Monitoring — A Disappointing Story

Abstract

Intrapartum electronic fetal-heart-rate monitoring was introduced in the United States in the early 1970s after studies supported the existence of a correlation between patterns of fetal heart rate and signs of fetal hypoxia — specifically, intrapartum fetal death, fetal blood pH, and Apgar scores.1 , 2 The common perception was that with this objective technique, evidence of fetal hypoxia would appear in a timely fashion, allowing the clinician to intervene and thus protect the fetus from the ravages of continued intrauterine oxygen deprivation. It was believed then that the intrapartum period was an especially treacherous time for the fetus, when most hypoxic . . .