Throughout pregnancy, the expectant mother experiences new sensations, succumbs to fears and panic. This is a normal reaction - hormone surges in the body, but you should still control yourself, since the slightest excitement affects not only the condition of the mother, but also the condition of the baby. The main fears of expectant mothers are aimed at the development of the baby, its activity, heartbeat, etc. To help mothers dispel fears about the activity and viability of the fetus, there are studies aimed at listening to the heartbeat of the fetus:
- auscultation using an obstetric stethoscope;
- listening to heartbeats using a Doppler apparatus;
- listening with a phonendoscope;
- Ultrasound examination with a Doppler apparatus.
At what week can you hear your baby's first heartbeat?
The earliest period at which the first heartbeats of an embryo can be recorded is the 6th week of pregnancy and only with the help of an ultrasound examination using a Doppler apparatus.
However, during a normal pregnancy, such a study is prescribed only at 12-14 weeks. Pocket Dopplers are sold in pharmacies and specialty stores, with which you can listen to heart sounds at home, starting from 12-14 weeks. This technique is quite expensive, the functions directly depend on the cost.
Well, the most common option is to see an obstetrician-gynecologist from 18-20 weeks of pregnancy using a phonendoscope or obstetric stethoscope. This is a reliable, time-tested listening method, on the basis of which you can determine with great confidence the condition of the fetus, its position in the womb, current diseases and the presence of multiple pregnancies.
Heart rate control is necessary
In some cases, expectant mothers are advised to monitor the fetal heart rate (heart rate) daily. Then you can’t do without a home portable Doppler, although it is too expensive (from $20 to $100). Let's look at these most critical cases when modern technology at home can help control the situation:
- When there is blood discharge from the genital tract of a woman, the possible cause of which is placental abruption, which threatens the death of the baby.
- If a diagnosis is made: threat of miscarriage. In this case, you need to monitor your heartbeat daily.
- In the “uterus toned” state. The fetus suffers from hypoxia, because the blood vessels of the placenta are greatly narrowed, and blood carrying nutrients and oxygen hardly enters the baby’s body.
- Anemia in pregnant women requires heart rate control. A sharp decrease in hemoglobin causes acute oxygen starvation in the fetus.
- Some diseases of a pregnant woman that provoke the development of hypoxia in the fetus require constant monitoring of heart rate.
However, if you regularly use Doppler, know that the baby feels the ultrasonic waves that the device emits. You should not disturb the child once again; listen to the heartbeat for a minute or two and turn it off.
Fetal Doppler
The sequence of auscultation
Auscultation is a method of measuring (listening) heart rate and other body conditions using a stethoscope. This method makes it possible to identify a large number of dangerous diseases with great accuracy. The examination is carried out using a stethoscope. This device was invented by the French doctor Laennec back in 1816, and the device is still popular today, as it allows you to listen to the body and accurately determine the condition of the patient’s systems and organs.
It will not be possible to listen to the heart rate with a stethoscope at home, unless at the 30th week and with an assistant who will apply the stethoscope with one side to the stomach and the other to the ear. Basically, the auscultation method is widely used in gynecology. The obstetrician-gynecologist, starting from the 20th week of pregnancy, tries to hear the fetal heart rate at each appointment using an obstetric stethoscope. There is a whole algorithm for carrying out this procedure:
- The woman must be warned about this procedure; accordingly, she must properly prepare for it: the intestines and bladder must be empty, otherwise it will be quite difficult to hear anything due to the extraneous noise that the intestines and bladder will produce. You can take a disposable sheet, because the listening will be done in a lying position. Also, the expectant mother should tune in to the procedure - do not worry, try to remain in a state of peace.
- The couch and stethoscope are disinfected with a special solution, then covered with an individual sheet.
- The woman lies on the couch in such a way that her legs are slightly bent while lying on her back.
- An obstetrician-gynecologist conducts an external examination using the Leopold-Levitsky method, determining the location of the fetus, the condition of the uterus, etc.
- The next stage is determining the listening point. The wide side of the stethoscope is applied to the tummy, the narrower side is adjacent to the obstetrician’s ear.
- When the point is found, the fetal heart rate is listened to, and the mother's pulse is simultaneously checked to compare the frequency of the two heartbeats. During the procedure, it is important not to touch the stethoscope with your hands to avoid sound interference.
- The procedure is completed, the expectant mother can get up from the couch and put herself in proper shape (the procedure is performed with a bare tummy).
- The obstetrician carefully disinfects the device, the couch and his hands.
The algorithm for carrying out the procedure is quite simple, but at home it is ineffective. The position of the fetus, the thickness of the fat layer on the mother’s abdomen, the location of the placenta and other factors can interfere with hearing the heart rate.
The auscultation technique is completely harmless to both the mother and the fetus. This has been proven and verified over a long period of use of this method, which cannot be said about cases when a Doppler apparatus is used. Its harmfulness has not been proven, but its harmlessness has not been proven either.
The algorithm for using a Doppler apparatus is simple, and you can hear the fetal heartbeat at home as early as the 12th week:
- A special gel is applied to the sensor of the device, then the sensor is applied to the stomach.
- Having fixed the handle of the device, we slowly move the sensor in search of the listening point.
- The device calculates the fetal heartbeat (at the 6th week they will be synchronous with the maternal ones, starting from the 7th week the heartbeat becomes more frequent and reaches its normal values of 140-160 beats per minute).
- The device turns off.
Without special indications, you should not abuse the use of Doppler at home. The baby is uncomfortable, and you are not an expert to identify pathologies and react to them in time. The maximum that you can hear at home is your heart rate and compare it with the norm. And outside the home, at an appointment with an obstetrician-gynecologist or during an ultrasound examination, you can hear the baby’s heart sounds, recognize twins, fetal movements, the movement of blood along the umbilical cord, the condition of the uterus, and much, much more, which determines the general condition of the pregnant woman.
Pregnant women often ask this question: is it possible to feel the fetal heartbeat in the stomach by placing your hand on it?
The opinion of doctors is clear: the heartbeat in the womb cannot be felt by hand at any stage of pregnancy, no matter how a man or woman puts their hand on it, trying to feel something, it will be ineffective.
If a pregnant woman feels pulsations in her abdomen, this may indicate high pressure in the blood vessels, requiring consultation with a specialist.
When can the fetal heartbeat be heard through the abdomen and how can it be felt?
The baby's pulse is indicative of the health status of the embryo. The obstetrician listens to the rhythm of the fetal heart by applying not an ear to the expectant mother's tummy, but a special tube - a stethoscope.
This method is applicable from the eighteenth week of pregnancy.
In the early stages, the baby's beating can be heard on an ultrasound. This can be done as early as the fifth week of embryo development.
The normal pulsation frequency should be:
Until the eighth week - from 125 to 135;
· up to the tenth – from 165 to 190;
How to listen with a stethoscope
The heart rate corresponds to the constant development of the ANS, which is responsible for all homeostasis. From the twentieth week, the obstetrician can hear the force of the kicks through the mother's abdomen using a stethoscope, a tube with a funnel at the end.
Listening to beats is carried out through the stomach of a pregnant woman in a horizontal position. The obstetrician needs to apply a stethoscope and listen to the heart rhythm. Normally, rhythmic, clear, double beats are heard.
It is necessary to hear the tremors not only to determine the physical condition of the embryo, but also to establish how it is placed in the abdominal cavity, transversely, whether it is in a breech presentation, or in a cephalic position.
After the twenty-fourth week of development, pulsations can be heard in different places of the uterus.
The child is also listened to during the birth process, through an obstetric stethoscope, every twenty minutes. This is necessary in order to control contractions and the baby’s reaction to them.
Ultrasound control
With a transvaginal sensor, pulsations are heard already in the sixth week of development.
If a transabdominal sensor is used, then on the seventh. When there is no beating, the embryo is frozen and does not develop.
The woman will have to undergo curettage and undergo an examination to identify the cause of the problem.
In the second and third trimester of pregnancy, an ultrasound specialist can determine not only the rhythm frequency, but also how the baby’s heart is positioned. His pulse in late stages of development depends on many factors:
· 
maternal illness;
· weather;
· physical condition of the pregnant woman;
· physical activity of the expectant mother.
To identify anomalies in the development of the cardiovascular system, a four-chamber ultrasound section is used, which allows one to assess the size and structure of the ventricles and atria.
The four-chamber view reveals abnormalities in the structure of the heart in eighty percent of cases.
Cardiotocography is used to listen to the child’s heart, according to the following indications:
· 
gestosis in later stages;
· frozen fetus or delay in its development;
acute condition of a pregnant woman;
Chronic illnesses of the mother;
· aging of the placenta;
· post-term pregnancy.
When performing CTG, the woman should lie on her back or side; if it is impossible to lie on her back, the pregnant woman is in a sitting position, the sensor is attached to her stomach.
Data processed on CTG:
· frequency;
· variability;
Rare or frequent tremors.
Echocardiography to listen to the fetal heartbeat is used only when indicated. The most significant period is from the eighteenth week of pregnancy.
Indications for prescribing an ECHO are: suspicion of a congenital defect; infectious and viral diseases in the expectant mother; late pregnancy; delayed fetal development.
When conducting echocardiography, Doppler mode, one-dimensional and two-dimensional ultrasound are used, which allows additional analysis of the structure of blood vessels and the nature of blood flow.
An ultrasonic detector for listening to fetal kicks is completely safe and convenient because it can be used at home.
The ultrasonic detector is used at home as prescribed by the attending physician. Manipulation time is ten minutes.
Norm and pathology
By listening to the baby's heartbeat in the womb, tachycardia can be diagnosed. This is a condition characterized by pulsations of two hundred beats per minute.
Strong heartbeat is a sign of oxygen deficiency in the fetus. In addition, there are reasons that influence the increase in the baby’s pulsations:
· 
a pregnant woman spends a long time in the open sun or in an unventilated room;
· anemia in the expectant mother;
· Stressful state of a woman.
Hypoxia is caused by the following reasons:
pathology of the placenta or umbilical cord;
· underdevelopment of internal organs.
Oxygen deficiency requires an adequate course of treatment for the underlying problem.
In some cases, the heart rate is muffled.
A weak pulse is a signal of a threatening condition, a possible termination of pregnancy. In the later stages, it is an indication for immediate delivery, as it indicates oxygen starvation, which is life-threatening.
If the tremors of the embryo are not heard when it develops more than five millimeters, this condition is diagnosed as a frozen pregnancy.
The onset of pregnancy can be complicated by a condition such as enembronia, that is, a intact fetal egg with no contents, the embryo itself.
To clarify the diagnosis, the pregnant woman comes for an ultrasound again in a week; if the child dies, the woman will have to undergo a medical procedure called abortion or curettage. Pregnancy may also turn out to be false, when the embryo has not been laid, only the placenta has developed. Delaying such a problem is dangerous; it can lead to serious complications and infertility in the future.
The baby’s heartbeat may not be felt at twenty-eight weeks; obstetricians refer to this as the death of the embryo; the woman is recommended to have an abortion or artificial birth.
Is the sex of the unborn baby determined by kicks?
Is it possible to find out the sex of an embryo by its beating? There are various folk methods, but none of them are supported by science.
Method one.
After listening to the beat, we determine the nature of the shocks. The male gender confirms a clear rhythm, the female – chaotic and does not coincide with the woman’s heartbeat.
Method two
We determine the place where the beat is best heard, if on the left, then a girl will be born, if it is heard on the right, then a boy.
Method three
We count the number of blows, for girls it should be more than 150, for boys about 120.
All three methods are very controversial; doctors claim that the rhythm, frequency of beats and their number depend on the health of the woman and child, and not on the gender of the baby.
You can find out one hundred percent whether the birth is a boy or a girl only by submitting a piece of placental tissue or amniotic fluid for analysis. Such analysis is carried out only when indicated.
The heart rate of a baby as it develops in the womb is an important indicator. It allows you to find out about the state of his health and assess with high accuracy the degree of its development. The fetal heartbeat is calculated week by week by an experienced doctor using special medical equipment. Already in the third trimester, the expectant mother can independently listen and count her baby’s heart rate.
In contact with
Formation time
As a rule, fetal heartbeat appears within 30 days after successful implantation. The fact is that of all organs, the heart is one of the first to form. Its formation occurs already from 21 days after conception. At 3-4 weeks, the heart muscle is a small hollow tube, which, however, is already capable of contraction. It becomes a full-fledged four-chamber organ in the 8th week of pregnancy.
To hear the heartbeat, a woman needs to visit an ultrasound specialist.
Note! Heart rate can only be determined in the early stages using a transvaginal sensor.
Starting from the third month of pregnancy, examinations can already be performed abdominally.
The number of contractions during normal childbearing should be at least 80-100 and no more than 200 in one minute.
The time when the fetal heart begins to beat is usually the same for all women.
However, if at the first time it was not possible to hear it, but the fertilized egg in the uterus is visualized, you should not get upset prematurely.
The fact is that the period of conception may be set incorrectly and the heart muscle has not yet had time to fully formed. The doctor will definitely prescribe a repeat test in 7-14 days. When the fetal heartbeat is heard on an ultrasound, we can confidently say that pregnancy is not frozen.
It is worth noting that during the first ultrasound examination, the doctor may not hear what kind of heartbeat the embryo has if the study is performed on an old device. Therefore, it is best for a woman to go to a good clinic with high-quality medical equipment and experienced specialists.
When can you hear a heartbeat? As a rule, in the middle of the second month after implantation, the level of human chorionic gonadotropin reaches 7200 IU/l. With this indicator, you can already see the fertilized egg in the uterine cavity, and distinguish the beating of the heart muscle that is not yet fully formed. Knowing at what hCG the heartbeat is heard, you can choose the right day to visit the doctor, who, using modern equipment, will confirm pregnancy.
It is important to measure heart rate within first trimester. The fact is that it is in the first three months that congenital defects can occur in the embryo. As a rule, pathology appears due to the bad habits of the expectant mother, taking antibiotics, hereditary predisposition, severe stress and infectious diseases.
To try to prevent abnormal heart development in a child, it is recommended plan conception in advance. A few months before pregnancy, you should completely get rid of bad habits, stop taking medications that can be toxic to the baby, eliminate coffee and tea from your diet, and try not to be nervous or worry about anything.
Measurement methods
The fetal heart rate is measured using modern hardware methods, which include
- Ultrasound is one of the most common ways to determine the duration of pregnancy, the size of the baby, examine the heart muscle and listen to its tones. You can already listen to the frequency of contractions on an ultrasound examination at 5-7 obstetric weeks. When the fetal heartbeat is heard on an ultrasound for the first time, the woman feels true happiness, since she is now sure that the baby is developing normally.
- A stethoscope is a medical device that can be used not only by specialists, but also by people without medical education. A stereoscope can be used closer to the third trimester.
- Cardiography to determine whether the heart muscle is working properly. With high accuracy, this method can detect oxygen starvation, thanks to which the doctor is able to take the necessary measures in a timely manner. The first time is carried out in the middle of the third trimester . Cardiography may be prescribed earlier. This is done if other hardware examination methods have given dubious results.
- Echocardiography is one of the highly informative methods of ultrasound examination. Echocardiography is prescribed at 18-28 weeks, if the doctor suspects that the embryo has developed a heart muscle defect.
Each of the above methods is informative and highly accurate. Hardware research methods not only make it possible to calculate the fetal heartbeat by week, but also to promptly identify abnormalities in the development of the embryo.
Can you feel the beat through your stomach?
Regardless of the stage of pregnancy, a woman can't feel the heartbeat of the unborn baby.
What she mistakes for heartbeats is only the pulsation of her own aorta, which occurs as a result of increased pressure in this vessel.
A surge in blood pressure occurs due to serious hormonal changes occurring in the female body.
If a woman feels through the stomach something similar to a heartbeat, it is imperative to contact a gynecologist, who, after a thorough examination, can refer her for a consultation with an experienced cardiologist.
Is it possible to hear the fetal heartbeat yourself at home? It is quite difficult to do this without the help of specialized medical equipment. Fortunately, today you can purchase devices that will allow you to hear the heartbeat of your long-awaited and already beloved baby already in the third trimester.
How can you listen to the beat yourself?
If you are interested in how to listen to the fetal heartbeat at home, you should know that you can do this early impossible on your own. In the first and second trimesters, this can only be done by a specialist using special equipment.
Popular methods for listening to the fetal heartbeat at home:
- Fetal Doppler, which can be used from the second trimester. This ultrasonic detector provides fairly accurate results. However, the cost of such a device is high.
- Starting from the third trimester, the expectant mother can independently listen to the baby’s heartbeat using a stethoscope. However, in some cases this cannot be done. For example, hearing the frequency of the beats may be difficult due to a thick layer of fat on the mother's abdomen or a large belly.
All of the above devices are absolutely harmless to the embryo. However, the baby often feels the radiation emanating from the device and always tries to move away from its rays. If a woman feels the baby is restless, it is best to postpone the measurement until the baby calms down. The measurement time should not exceed 10 minutes. Longer use of the device causes stress in the child.
Norm
The frequency of the rhythms directly depends on the period of gestation of the child. Modern doctors have established normal heart rate fetus by week, which allows you to control the development of the embryo.
The fetal heart rate by week is presented in the following table.
Why is it important to know what the normal fetal heart rate is by week?
The fact is that having seen deviations in the child’s heart rate in a timely manner, can be warned spontaneous miscarriage and the development of a dangerous illness in the embryo.
However, with a slight deviation, the diagnosis is usually not made.
Too much fast beat heart in the embryo may be associated with:
- Severe stress experienced by the expectant mother.
- Chronic.
- Lack of oxygen in rooms where the expectant mother often spends her time.
- Anemia.
A mandatory point during childbirth is to measure the baby’s heart rate, since during delivery the baby experiences severe stress and lack of oxygen. The runout rate is 140 beats per minute. However, in some cases this figure can reach 160.
Important! By monitoring the frequency of contractions, the doctor can determine when placental abruption occurs or notice compression of the umbilical cord.
Every pregnant woman dreams of having a healthy and strong baby. She eagerly awaits his appearance and attends every ultrasound session and doctor's appointment scheduled by the gynecologist. The most pleasant moment in such examinations is listening to the fetal heartbeat, because this sound helps the mother to better feel her belly and be convinced of the reality of what is happening. In addition, this sign can tell a lot about the health and development of the child.
Why is fetal heart rate measured by week?
It is unlikely that any mother will refuse to hear the heartbeat of her unborn baby. After all, this sound fills the soul of the expectant mother with joy, and indicates the imminent birth of a new life. However, many mothers are interested in the question: “Why do doctors measure the fetal heartbeat?”
Many people think that a baby's heartbeat can determine its gender. However, such fortune telling has not been scientifically confirmed, so it can only be used for your own entertainment.
The fetal heartbeat is measured for several purposes. All of them are aimed at determining the child’s condition, so we suggest you familiarize yourself with them.
Why is the number of heartbeats of a baby in the womb measured?
- First of all, the fetal heartbeat is checked to confirm pregnancy. As soon as a woman’s hCG level rises so much that a pregnancy test shows two lines, she should immediately go to a gynecologist, who will give a referral for an ultrasound by the age of 3 months. It is here that the fact of pregnancy will be finally confirmed by the presence of a heartbeat. Moreover, if the heartbeat is not heard before 4 months, a diagnosis of “frozen pregnancy” may be made and an abortion may be performed.
- Heart monitoring is also performed to determine how well the baby is developing. It is by the heartbeat that you can determine whether everything is normal for mother and child. For example, fetal hypoxia can be determined by a fast heartbeat in the womb, and heart problems can be determined by a slow heartbeat.
- Determining the condition of the child during childbirth is also done by listening to the baby's heartbeat. This method helps to identify labor disturbances and danger to the baby during childbirth in a timely manner.
That is why, from the third week, doctors listen to the fetal heartbeat. This sign allows you to make sure that the baby is developing normally and avoid unwanted deviations.
How is the fetal heartbeat measured?
Your fetal heartbeat can be measured in a variety of ways. Each of them has its own characteristics and disadvantages.
During normal pregnancy, the heart beat can be heard using an ultrasound machine or a regular stethoscope.
We invite you to review all the options for using different methods of determining labor. Which one is right for you is usually prescribed by your doctor.
Ways to listen to the fetal heartbeat:
- Ultrasound is the most commonly used method to determine the fetal heartbeat. It is prescribed to all women in the early stages of pregnancy. In addition to transmitting the heartbeat, ultrasound shows other organs and the quality of their work.
- Cardiotocography is also sometimes used to determine the fetal heartbeat. This method is also suitable for those for whom the ultrasound procedure could not help.
- Echocardiography is used if there is a suspicion that the fetus's heart is not developing properly. This examination is prescribed for those who are suspected of having heart defects. The risk group includes pregnant women with congenital defects, those whose children have defects, and women over 40 years of age.
- Auscultation is as common as ultrasound. In this procedure, the doctor listens to the fetal heartbeat using a stethoscope. This procedure is considered impossible in cases of polyhydramnios and oligohydramnios, obesity and the location of the placenta on the anterior wall of the uterus.
One of these methods is used to listen to the child’s heartbeat. Most women during pregnancy encounter only ultrasound and auscultation. The cardiotocograph apparatus is used extremely rarely.
Is it possible to feel the fetal heartbeat through the stomach yourself?
Most mothers would like to let their husband or parents listen to their baby's heartbeat. However, not everyone knows how to do this. In fact, there are ways!
Listening to the heart at home does not replace this procedure with a doctor. Only an experienced specialist will be able to sense deviations from the norm.
We will describe to you several ways to hear the heart beating in the womb at home. However, these manipulations can be done only for entertainment.
How to hear your baby's heartbeat at home:
- Using a special tube, you can feel the fetal heartbeat. To do this, the stethoscope is placed on the stomach and held with the hand. The ear is raised to it, and the owner of the stethoscope listens carefully. The main thing here is to understand where the fetal heartbeat is, and where it moves or the mother’s pulse.
- Fetal Doppler is a portable sound detector. With its help, you can hear the heartbeat without preliminary training. The set includes headphones, thanks to which you can listen to the baby’s heart without being distracted by extraneous factors.
- In the later stages, you can hear the baby's heartbeat by simply placing your ear directly to the pregnant woman's belly. However, this is only possible if the expectant mother has a small layer of fat. The ear should be placed below the navel if the fetal head is facing down, and above the navel if it is facing up.
These methods can be used starting from 18 weeks. They will not help you determine whether your child has a rhythmic or irregular heartbeat, but they will make you feel the joy of motherhood and fatherhood.
When does a baby have palpitations?
The baby's heartbeat begins as early as 5 weeks. At the same time, the formation of the heart begins at a very early stage - at 4 weeks. However, at this time the heart is a hollow tube.
When can you feel a baby’s heartbeat using various devices:
- With the help of a transvaginal ultrasound machine, the fetal heart rate will be available as early as the fifth week. The inconvenience of this method is that the ultrasound sensor is inserted vaginally.
- The first heart rate can be heard using transabdominal at a fairly early stage - 7 weeks.
- How many beats per minute the baby’s heart produces can be heard with a stethoscope at 20 weeks.
Usually the first ultrasound is done in the third month. It is from this moment that they begin to carry out actions to determine the heartbeat and see whether it is elevated, weak or normal.
What heart rate should a fetus have?
You're probably wondering what your baby's heart rate should be. Today we will tell you what the norm is in this regard. However, to do this, you need to learn to determine: “What do I feel, the mother’s pulse or the baby’s heartbeat!”
The doctor not only counts the number of heart beats per minute, but also listens to its character. If it is dull, weak and arrhythmic, this may be a symptom of hypoxia
Our list shows the normal heart rate during different periods of a child’s formation. Small deviations cannot be considered pathology. The alarm should be sounded when the number of shocks increases to 200 or decreases to 100.
Fetal heartbeat by week:
- 4-6 weeks – the heart beats at a speed of 80-85 every minute;
- 6-8 weeks – the heart beats at a speed of 110-130 every minute;
- 9-10 weeks - the heart beats at a speed of 170-190 every minute;
- Starting from week 11, the heart beats at a speed of 140-160 every minute.
If the baby’s heartbeat at 8 weeks is, for example, 135 beats, there is nothing wrong with that. The mother's activity could increase the rate of heart contraction. This change is also observed during the child’s activity.
What should the fetal heartbeat be like (video)
A child's heartbeat is a very important indicator of his health. Therefore, it must be listened to by a doctor. Only a specialist will be able to distinguish a healthy heart from a sick one and answer the question: “Why does the heart stop?”
The main reasons for the psycho-emotional lability of women of childbearing age include cyclic fluctuations in hormonal levels. The onset of pregnancy becomes one of the tests in terms of endocrine changes.
New sensations bring increased anxiety into the life of the expectant mother. To reduce anxiety, many women try to find objective confirmation that the baby they are carrying feels normal.
One of the criteria for assessing a child’s condition is determining his heart rate. How can you independently hear the fetal heartbeat at home?
Feeling the heart sounds of the unborn baby is possible only with the help of additional tools.
Attempts by relatives to determine heart rate by directly placing their ear on the pregnant woman’s stomach will be unsuccessful.
Audible sound phenomena in such a case are often associated with maternal blood flow, intestinal peristalsis, or fetal movement.
Gynecologists evaluate the heart sounds of the unborn baby, starting from the second half of pregnancy.
To carry out this simple procedure, a special obstetric stethoscope is used.
The pregnant woman undergoes an external examination, determines the position of the fetus and then resorts to an indirect study of its heartbeat.
Since the obstetric stethoscope is a wooden tube, it is physically impossible for the expectant mother to independently listen to the baby’s heart using this device.
But the essence of the method can be applied using a regular phonendoscope.
In order to listen to the fetal heartbeat, you need to lie down comfortably on the bed (sofa) and place the membrane or funnel of the stethoscope at the point of best conduction of the child’s heart sounds.
Determination of the listening location
Before performing independent auscultation, you need to determine how the baby is positioned relative to the midline of its mother’s abdomen.
Using your palms, smoothly, gently, but with a certain degree of pressure, evaluate which part is above the womb. The hands are closed at the tips of the middle fingers, the palmar surface of the hands is facing the pregnant woman’s face, and the back is facing the legs.
In this position, the phalanges are slightly immersed, palpating what is located in the lower abdomen (head or pelvis, legs of the fetus). Then continue palpation, moving upward.
The convex dense part corresponds to the back. It is in this area that the phonendoscope membrane must be installed.
Character of fetal heart sounds
The heart of a small, actively growing organism contracts twice as fast as the mother’s, with a heart rate of 140–160 per minute.
The clarity and distinctness of heart sounds depends on the condition of the fetus, its position and the fat layer on the mother’s abdomen. The heart rate also reflects the baby's activity.
But deviations from normal parameters in any direction may indicate oxygen deficiency (hypoxia).
It is worth noting that the detection of alarming changes in the fetal heartbeat at home must be reported to the observing obstetrician-gynecologist.
One way or another, only a doctor can objectively assess and check the condition of the unborn child using additional methods.
It is quite difficult for a pregnant woman to perform auscultation on herself. In addition, it is almost impossible to confidently and correctly interpret listened sounds without existing skills.
To solve the question of how else you can hear the fetal heartbeat at home, mobile fetal dopplers have been developed.
Using this device, you can easily determine your baby's heart rate starting from the 12th week. The operation of the device is based on the physics of ultrasound.
There are simple models that only allow you to listen to heart sounds, and there are Dopplers that calculate heart rate. The assistive device can be purchased at a pharmacy or medical supply store.
Ultrasonic waves are not considered to be teratogens. However, absolute evidence of the safety of ultrasound has not yet been collected. Doctors recommend limiting the use of fetal dopplers in frequency and duration (no more than 10 minutes).
Often the fetus shows a negative attitude towards such a study of the heartbeat and tries to hide from the sensor.
There is no need to persistently achieve your goal; it is enough to simply postpone the attempt to listen to cardiac activity for another time.
When is self-monitoring necessary?
Constantly listening to the baby's heartbeat can increase anxiety, so you should resort to independent auscultation only on the recommendation of a doctor or if there is an existing pregnancy pathology.
The presence of anemia in a future parent, chronic diseases, or the threat of miscarriage may be a reason to monitor the condition of the fetus at home in order to timely seek medical help if the need arises.
