
“Pregnant women who are concerned about their baby’s health, such as a decrease in movements, should seek advice from their health care provider and not rely on the use of fetal heart monitors used at home,” said the alliance. In a 2009 position statement, the Australian and New Zealand Stillbirth Alliance said there was no evidence to indicate that home fetal heart monitoring devices have a role as a surveillance tool to improve pregnancy outcomes. “Without training, the sounds detected from the mother or placenta could easily be misinterpreted as the fetal heartbeat, providing potentially inaccurate reassurance,” the regulatory agency said.īoth RANZCOG and the US Food and Drug Administration already recommend against using the devices to detect fetal heartbeat in a home setting. Expectant parents should begin counting daily at the start of the third. A handheld device called a fetal doppler monitor is used to track. Count the Kicks is a simple way to monitor your babys movements.

The SweetieSong Pocket Fetal Dopplers detect babys heartbeat as early. As you can imagine, not finding a heartbeat or misinterpreting a signal may generate anxiety. About This Item : Doppler fetal monitoring can support the growth of the mother-child bond. Contact our sales team at if you are a medical professional. The beam must be aligned with the heart, says Lim. Now, the TGA says it has become aware of cases in which parents concerned about the health of their unborn child used a fetal doppler incorrectly and delayed seeking medical attention as a result. One of the main issues with using an at-home fetal Doppler is that you might not be able to find the baby’s heart rate easily. While used regularly in healthcare settings, handheld fetal doppler devices have become available to untrained consumers over the last few years. Your health provider will check your babys heart rate either continuously with an electronic fetal monitor, or periodically (this is called intermittent auscultation).

The TGA has launched an investigation into home-use fetal heart monitors, urging clinicians to caution parents against them. Parents have been “falsely reassured” by commercially available home fetal heart monitors, the regulator says.
