Patient's question:
At 31 weeks and 6 days, in recent days, the fetal heart monitoring has shown a score of 0 for both the acceleration time and acceleration amplitude, while other scores are 2, totaling 6 points. Is it too early to do fetal heart monitoring now? I want to ask if fetal heart monitoring at 31 weeks is accurate?Doctor's answer:
Generally, non-stress tests (NST) are performed after 32 weeks of gestation in clinical practice. However, if there are some pregnancy complications or comorbidities, and if fetal hypoxia is suspected, NST can also be started from 31 weeks.During the NST, the fetal heart rate accelerates after fetal movement, which primarily indicates whether the fetus is reacting well in utero. Sometimes, the fetus may be in a sleep state, leading to a physiological reduction in fetal movements. In such cases, it is recommended to repeat the NST. If fetal intracardiac hypoxia is suspected, oxygen therapy is advised.