While you’re in labor, electronic fetal monitors can detect and trace the baby’s heart rate and your contractions, either at the same time or separately. These valuable tools measure your baby’s well-being and assess your labor progress. And because they’re so sensitive, monitors show that a contraction is diminishing even before you notice the pain subsiding, which can encourage you and help you save energy.
With external fetal monitoring, a lightweight stretchable band or belt holds a small round ultrasound disc and a pressure-sensitive device to your abdomen. These tools tell how often your contractions are occur and how long each one lasts, but not their actual strength.
When you first arrive at the hospital or birthing center, you’ll receive 20-30 minutes of external fetal monitoring as part of your initial assessment. Usually, if the initial fetal heart rate and contraction pattern show that both you and baby are doing well, the monitor is removed and used intermittently. If you don’t need continuous fetal monitoring, you can ask the nurse to remove it so you can walk around.
If your doctor, midwife or labor nurse(s) need to observe the baby’s heartbeat more closely, they might recommend internal fetal monitoring. Available only after your water breaks, this method uses a small electrode attached to the baby’s scalp to directly monitor the baby’s heartbeat.
Depending on your labor progress, your provider and labor nurse may need to steadily monitor your contractions’ strength. To do this, a thin, catheter-shaped device is placed inside the uterus. Continuous electronic fetal monitoring does limit your ability to walk around, but you can often sit up in a chair or on the side of the bed with your legs supported.