Gynecology and Obstetrics

Ob-Gyn Ultrasound and Fetal Monitoring

The role of ultrasound in obstetrics and gynecology has made tremendous impact in patient care. Ultrasound has permitted the imaging of the fetus and placenta in obstetrics and maternal internal organs in gynecology with very good clarity to allow advanced diagnosis and helped to guide various lifesaving interventions in both the cases of the fetus and the mother. The gynecology societies and associations and mainly the International Society of Ultrasound in Obstetrics and Gynecology and World Federation of Ultrasound in Medicine and Biology disapprove the use of ultrasound for the sole purpose of providing the souvenir images of the fetus which give a chance on knowing the gender of the fetus.

The current form of fetal monitoring was firstly introduced in the 1960s. Fetal monitoring was well established worldwide for monitoring pregnancies from ~26 weeks gestation right through to labor & delivery of the new born. Antenatally, pregnant women are monitored for, typically, 20 to 30 minutes at a time, repeated at intervals determined by their risk level. This will depend on their obstetric history, social factors, medical & clinical factors. In the UK, NICE have issued guidelines for trace interpretation, together with appropriate decision support & clinical management pathways. In labour, pregnant women are typically monitored continuously throughout labour, right up to delivery.