Foetal Heart Rate Monitoring Warning

[extremelychocolateymilkroll]

Doctors are warning expectant parents that at-home foetal heart rate monitors should be used only for "fun" and not as an alternative to medical advice. The devices, which pick up the sound of the baby's heartbeat, can give "false reassurance", the British Medical Journal reports. See here.

My MW said this to me my last pregnancy! she said people often can't find the heartbeat as they aren't as sensitive as the ones they use!

There was a sad story on another forum I use...a lady at the very end of her pregnancy reassured herself that despite not a lot of movement, all was fine as she could hear the baby's heartbeat.

Unfortunately, it was her own heartbeat she could hear...her baby had died a few days earlier

I would never use a doppler at home myself now having heard that story...it's lovely to hear the heartbeat when at the midwife but leave it to the professionals who know exactly what they're listening for.

have posted on similar threads and i absolutely agree, dopplers can be reassuring, but you would not dream of using other medical equipment at home without training... dopplers can give false sense of security and alos create huge worry, Midwives and doctors can struggle to locate the Fh at >16 weeks, so why would a lay person be able to do it any better?

i really feel dopplers for home use exploit the ansiety of pregnant women and those who've had miscarriages etc..

i am sure lots of women will come on and say how great they found having a doppler at home, but i personally feel they are inappropriate