title: Cardiocirculatory monitoring during immediate fetal-to-neonatal transition: a systematic qualitative review of the literature.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  The fetal-to-neonatal transition is a complex process that includes changes in cardiac and respiratory systems.
  
  
  OBJECTIVE
  The aim of this study is to review the different methods of cardiocirculatory monitoring during the immediate neonatal transition period.
  
  
  METHODS
  A systematic search of PubMed and Ovid Embase was performed using the following terms: infant, newborn, newborn infant, neonate, neonates, heart, cardiac, blood pressure, haemodynamic, hemodynamics, blood circulation, circulation, echocardiography, ultrasonography, sonography, electrocardiography, ECG, oximetry, pulse, pulse oximetry, monitoring, measurement, acclimatization, adaptation, transition, after birth and delivery room. Additional articles were identified by manual search of cited references. Only human studies describing cardiocirculatory monitoring during the first 15 min after birth were included.
  
  
  RESULTS
  Thirteen studies were identified that described heart rate (HR). Additional five studies were identified that measured blood pressure. Four studies performed functional echocardiography during neonatal transition; two in addition to blood pressure monitoring and three in addition to HR monitoring.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  Routine HR monitoring using electrocardiography or pulse oximetry is used to evaluate adequate hemodynamic transition, and reference ranges have been established. Measuring blood pressure noninvasively though noncontinuously might be of some value in future, considering that the normative data have been established recently. Echocardiographic monitoring during the immediate transition period will improve the knowledge about cardiac function changes, but introduction in clinical routine remains questionable.
authors.affiliation: Division of Neonatology, Medical University, Graz, Austria.
authors.forename: Nariae
authors.initials: N
authors.lastname: Baik
authors.forename: Berndt
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Urlesberger
authors.forename: Bernhard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Schwaberger
authors.forename: Thomas
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Freidl
authors.forename: Georg M
authors.initials: GM
authors.lastname: Schmölzer
authors.forename: Gerhard
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Pichler
mesh_terms: D001794:Blood Pressure; D004452:Echocardiography; D004562:Electrocardiography; D005260:Female; D006334:Heart Function Tests; D006339:Heart Rate; D006439:Hemodynamics; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D008297:Male; D008991:Monitoring, Physiologic / Q000379:methods*; D009359:Neonatology; D010092:Oximetry; D036801:Parturition