Can I have a normal birth if my fetal heart rate is not good?

The fetal heart rate is the number of heartbeats of the fetus in the pregnant woman's womb. This is very important for the fetus. People can observe the physical condition and development of the fetus through the fetal heart rate. There are two ways for women to give birth: natural birth and caesarean section. Generally, people will choose natural birth. However, there are requirements for natural birth. So, is it possible to give birth naturally if the fetal heart rate is not good? Let's introduce it in detail below.

If the fetal heart rate is not good, you can give birth naturally, but there may be adverse reactions, so a caesarean section is recommended.

If within 20 minutes of fetal heart monitoring, the baby's fetal heart rate has a relatively stable baseline of 120 to 160 beats per minute, and your baby's fetal heart rate increases at least twice during activity, at least 15 beats per minute faster than the resting fetal heart rate, and each time lasts at least 15 seconds, then the fetal heart monitoring result is normal, or called "fetal heart monitoring reaction type." A normal result means your baby is probably doing well. Your doctor may have you monitor your fetal heart rate every week until your baby is born.

If the fetal heart rate does not increase when the baby moves, or if the baby does not move once in 40 minutes, the result is "unresponsive". An unresponsive fetal heart rate monitor does not necessarily mean that the situation is abnormal. It only means that the monitoring does not provide enough information. You may need to do it again after 1 hour, or do other tests, such as fetal biophysical assessment or uterine contraction stress test. However, an unresponsive fetal heart rate monitor may indicate fetal intrauterine hypoxia or a problem with the placenta. If your doctor thinks your baby is not doing well in your womb, he or she may recommend an induced labor or a cesarean section. If the fetal heart rate monitoring is abnormal, don't worry too much. It may be because your own emotions affect the fetal heart rate. However, if the situation is more serious, you need to do a comprehensive examination and find treatment measures in time.

Symptoms of poor fetal heart rate monitoring

The normal fetal heart rate is between 120 beats/minute and 160 beats/minute. If the fetal heart rate remains <120/minute or >160/minute for more than 10 minutes, it indicates that the fetal heart rate is abnormal. During fetal heart monitoring, if an abnormality is found in the fetal heart graph, it is often used to indicate fetal heart abnormality. In most cases, abnormal fetal heart rate means that the fetus is suffering from hypoxia in the uterus. The more severe the abnormal fetal heart rate, the more severe the fetal hypoxia. However, not all abnormal fetal heart rate is caused by hypoxia.

In addition to the above situations, the condition of the pregnant woman herself also affects the changes in the fetal heart rate. For example, if the pregnant woman has a fever, the fetal heart rate will often exceed 160 beats/minute. If the pregnant woman has hyperthyroidism, her own heart rate is very fast, and the fetal heart rate will often exceed 160 beats/minute. If the pregnant woman takes certain medications, such as ritodrine hydrochloride taken during premature delivery to preserve the fetus, or atropine, it can cause the mother and child's heart rate to accelerate.