Ultrasound fetal monitor - ANSWER Picks up the movement of the heart valves
Tocodynamometer (toco) - ANSWER Measures pressure/strain of the top of the
fundus
Fetal scalp electrode - ANSWER Picks up the electrical activity spikes of the QRS
complex (R-R)
Intrauterine Pressure Catheter (IUPC) - ANSWER Measures pressure inside uterus in
mmHg
What does the nurse look for in a systemic assessment of fetal heart rate? - ANSWER -
Pattern evolution
-Accompanying clinical characteristics
-Normalcy vs. urgency
-Baseline rate
-Variability
-Periodic/episodic changes
-Uterine activity
Baseline fetal heart rate - ANSWER The approximate mean fetal heart rate rounded to
increments of 5bpm during a 10 minute period
-Excludes accelerations, decelerations, and periods of marked variability
1
, -Must be 2 minutes of identifiable baseline segments (not necessarily continuous) in a 10
minute window
What is the length in time of each box on the fetal heart monitor? - ANSWER 10
seconds
What is a normal baseline FHR? - ANSWER 110-160 bpm
Fetal bradycardia - ANSWER <110 bpm
Fetal tachycardia - ANSWER >160 bpm
Fetal heart rate variability - ANSWER Fluctuations in the baseline fetal heart rate that
are irregular in amplitude and frequency
-Variability is good
Absent FHR variability - ANSWER Amplitude range undetectable
Minimal FHR variability - ANSWER Less than 5bpm
Moderate FHR variability - ANSWER Between 6 and 25bpm
Marked FHR variability - ANSWER Greater than 25 bpm
When does the nurse typically see marked variability? - ANSWER When the fetus had
a deceleration and is trying to compensate to fix oxygenation
What is the most important thing to look at in fetal heart rate? - ANSWER Variability
2
Tocodynamometer (toco) - ANSWER Measures pressure/strain of the top of the
fundus
Fetal scalp electrode - ANSWER Picks up the electrical activity spikes of the QRS
complex (R-R)
Intrauterine Pressure Catheter (IUPC) - ANSWER Measures pressure inside uterus in
mmHg
What does the nurse look for in a systemic assessment of fetal heart rate? - ANSWER -
Pattern evolution
-Accompanying clinical characteristics
-Normalcy vs. urgency
-Baseline rate
-Variability
-Periodic/episodic changes
-Uterine activity
Baseline fetal heart rate - ANSWER The approximate mean fetal heart rate rounded to
increments of 5bpm during a 10 minute period
-Excludes accelerations, decelerations, and periods of marked variability
1
, -Must be 2 minutes of identifiable baseline segments (not necessarily continuous) in a 10
minute window
What is the length in time of each box on the fetal heart monitor? - ANSWER 10
seconds
What is a normal baseline FHR? - ANSWER 110-160 bpm
Fetal bradycardia - ANSWER <110 bpm
Fetal tachycardia - ANSWER >160 bpm
Fetal heart rate variability - ANSWER Fluctuations in the baseline fetal heart rate that
are irregular in amplitude and frequency
-Variability is good
Absent FHR variability - ANSWER Amplitude range undetectable
Minimal FHR variability - ANSWER Less than 5bpm
Moderate FHR variability - ANSWER Between 6 and 25bpm
Marked FHR variability - ANSWER Greater than 25 bpm
When does the nurse typically see marked variability? - ANSWER When the fetus had
a deceleration and is trying to compensate to fix oxygenation
What is the most important thing to look at in fetal heart rate? - ANSWER Variability
2
