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The effect of uterine contractions on fetal oxygen saturation
1Leeds General Infirmary, Academic Unit of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, UK.
Objective:
To find out what happens to fetal arteriolar oxygen saturation during a uterine contraction.
Design:
Prospective observational study.
Setting:
Labour ward, St James's University Hospital, Leeds.
Subjects:
Eighteen women in normal labour monitored with a fetal scalp surface pulse oximetry sensor, an intrauterine pressure catheter, and a head to cervix force transducer.
Methods:
The effect of intrauterine pressure and head to cervix force on fetal arteriolar oxygen saturation was examined using time series analysis and a regression model of 159 contractions.
Outcome Measure:
Fetal oxygen saturation during a contraction.
Results:
The average oxygen saturation drops after a contraction. The greatest drop in oxygen saturation is reached 92 s after the peak of a contraction and takes approximately 1 min 30 s to recover (P = 0.036).
Conclusion:
Uterine contractions during normal labour affect fetal oxygen saturation.