Fewer accelerations and decreased long term variability in the heart rate of small for gestational age fetuses.
Two hundred newborns delivered after decelerative antenatal fetal heart rate tracings were divided retrospectively into two groups, one that was small for gestational age (SGA) and another that was appropriately grown for gestational age (AGA). Analysis of the tests showed a lower prevalence of good long term variability in the SGA group when compared with the AGA group. In addition, fetal heart rate accelerations occurred less frequently in the SGA group, even in the presence of good long term variability.
Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, University of Stellenbosch, Tygerberg, South Africa.
T M
TM
D'Hooghe
H J
HJ
Odendaal
D005260:Female; D005865:Gestational Age; D006340:Heart Rate, Fetal / Q000502:physiology*; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007236:Infant, Small for Gestational Age / Q000502:physiology*; D011247:Pregnancy; D012189:Retrospective Studies