Prolonged saltatory fetal heart rate pattern leading to newborn metabolic acidosis

• Published in: Clinical and experimental obstetrics & gynecology Vol. 41; no. 5; p. 507
• Main Authors: Nunes, I, Ayres-de-Campos, D, Kwee, A, Rosén, K G
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Canada 01.01.2014
• Subjects: Acidosis - diagnosis; Acidosis - etiology; Acidosis - physiopathology; Blood Gas Analysis; Cardiotocography - methods; Female; Fetal Hypoxia - complications; Fetal Hypoxia - diagnosis; Fetal Hypoxia - physiopathology; Heart Rate, Fetal - physiology; Humans; Infant, Newborn; Infant, Newborn, Diseases - diagnosis; Infant, Newborn, Diseases - etiology; Infant, Newborn, Diseases - physiopathology; Male; Pregnancy; Pregnancy Outcome; Prenatal Diagnosis - methods; Signal Processing, Computer-Assisted
• ISSN: 0390-6663
• DOI: 10.12891/ceog17322014

The saltatory pattern, characterized by wide and rapid oscillations of the fetal heart rate (FHR), remains a controversial entity. The authors sought to evaluate whether it could be associated with an adverse fetal outcome. The authors report a case series of four saltatory patterns occurring in the last 30 minutes before birth in association with cord artery metabolic acidosis, obtained from three large databases of internally acquired FHR tracings. The distinctive characteristics of this pattern were evaluated with the aid of a computer system. All cases were recorded in uneventful pregnancies, with normal birthweight singletons, born vaginally at term. The saltatory pattern lasted between 23 and 44 minutes, exhibited a mean oscillatory amplitude of 45.9 to 80.0 beats per minute (bpm) and a frequency between four and eight cycles per minute. A saltatory pattern exceeding 20 minutes can be associated with the occurrence of fetal metabolic acidosis.