Electronic monitoring of fetal heart rate and determination of fetal scalp blood pH in prediction of intrapartum fetal distress.

A prospective study on consecutive fetal monitoring in 559 deliveries was carried out. The difference between the first 30-minute and the last 30-minute monitoring was compared. Abnormal fetal heart rate (FHR) pattern in the last 30 minutes combined with abnormal fetal scalp blood pH has a good predictability of 1- and 5-minute Apgar scores. The correlation of fetal heart rate-uterine contraction (FHR-UC) monitoring (525 cases) and fetal scalp blood pH determinations (FSB-pH) (79 cases) with the fetal condition was assessed. It is indicated that the first 30-minute FHR tracing can reflect the fetal status in labor, and FHR-UC monitoring assessment is evidently superior to FSB-pH in the prediction of a vigorous fetus. Whereas, FSB-pH is superior to FHR-UC monitoring in the prediction of a compromised fetus.