The results of a five-year study of continuous fetal monitoring on an obstetric service.

A 5-year experience of the effects of fetal monitoring at the University of Utah College of Medicine (1971-1975) are reported. During this period there were 5087 deliveries, of which 4237 (83%) were monitored electronically during labor. During this time the primary cesarean section rate increased from 3.19% in the year before monitoring has begun to 10.5% in the last year of the period studied. This increase, however, was due primarily to a number of changes in obstetric practice and to an increase in the number of high-risk patients followed at our institution. The rate of primary cesarean section as compared to total deliveries due to fetal distress resulting from observations made with electronic monitoring was a fairly stable 3-3.5%. The number of cases of Apgar scores at 1 minute of 6 or less dropped markedly during the period of study and cases of 5-minute Apgar scores of 6 or less decreased slightly. The number of patients demonstrating early, late, and variable deceleration patterns remained fairly stable throughout the years of the study. Variable and late deceleration patterns correlated well with cord compression and small placentas, respectively.