title: Comparison of mathematical indices of fetal heart rate variability with visual assessment in the human and sheep.
abstract: Mathematical indices for quantitation of fetal heart rate variability have been proposed by numerous authors, but there have only been infrequent attempts to determine which such indices correspond to the semi-subjective evaluation of variability observed by clinicians. We have previously examined most of the published indices by using them for calculation of the variability of sets of computer-generated numbers, and seeing if they fulfill certain criteria of validity. Two sets of indices (each measuring short-term and long-term variability) were selected as acceptable. Segments of fetal heart rate records from both humans and sheep, with a wide range of subjective variability, were used to compare the mathematically derived indices with the semi-subjective evaluation of three observers. The results show that the mathematical indices of short-term variability compare closely to its subjective evaluation of being present or absent. The long-term variability of indices also increase progressively with the observers' evaluations of increasing variability. The agreement among observers, measured by Cohen's kappa test, is generally "substantial", although for some indices the agreement was "moderate" to "almost perfect". We conclude that the two sets of indices examined do quantitate what is clinically regarded as fetal heart rate variability.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics, Gynaecology and Reproductive Sciences, University of California San Francisco.
authors.forename: K
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Knopf
authors.forename: J T
authors.initials: JT
authors.lastname: Parer
authors.forename: M I
authors.initials: MI
authors.lastname: Espinoza
authors.forename: J I
authors.initials: JI
authors.lastname: Horton
authors.forename: A J
authors.initials: AJ
authors.lastname: Gunn
authors.forename: C E
authors.initials: CE
authors.lastname: Williams
authors.forename: P D
authors.initials: PD
authors.lastname: Gluckman
authors.forename: W J
authors.initials: WJ
authors.lastname: Parer
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D005069:Evaluation Studies as Topic; D005260:Female; D006340:Heart Rate, Fetal; D006801:Humans; D008433:Mathematics; D015588:Observer Variation; D011247:Pregnancy; D012756:Sheep