Comparision of reflection pulse oximetry and cardiotocography for intrapartal surveillance in presence of fetal arrhythmia and cardiac malformation - A case report

Comparision of Reflection Pulse Oximetry and Cardiotocography for Intrapartal Surveillance in Presence of Fetal Arrhythmia and Cardiac Malformation - A Case Report: Cardiotocography is currently the standard method for intrapartal surveillance. However, applicability of this method is limited in presence of fetal arrhythmia. Therefore, in fetuses with arrhythmia, several fetal blood analyses or primary Caesarean section have to be performed. This report presents the intrapartal surveillance of a fetus with ventricular arrhythmia and a cardiac malformation which is suspected to be an Uhl's anomaly. The intrapartal surveillance was performed by cardiotocography and reflection pulse oximetry. The fetal heart rate trace was interpretable only 11% of surveillance time. The pulse oximeter provided 51% of the time valid signals with a stable oxygen saturation level. Due to prolonged second stage of labour a forceps extraction was performed.