During your pregnancy, your doctor will likely use a doppler instrument to listen to your baby's heartbeat at each prenatal appointment. Should something sound different to him, he may order a non-stress test or a half-hour monitoring of your baby's heart rate. If your baby's hear rate is abnormally high or higher than usual, your OB may come to a few different conclusions. While a high heart rate may not be as concerning as a low heart rate, it's still something to watch.
Fetal Distress
Fetal distress often occurs near the end of pregnancy and is often revealed by an abnormal heart rate. Fetal distress can be the result of a number of causes, including an over-mature baby, a long labor or an unusual position in the womb, according to the Merck Manual. Your doctor will listen to the heartbeat and decide whether it's abnormal enough to warrant an intervention, such as bed rest or an emergency induction of labor. Sometimes fetal distress lasts only a short time, but the heart rate will likely still be monitored closely.
Maternal Anxiety
Your level of stress and anxiety can have an effect on the speed of your baby's heart rate, according to the American Academy of Family Physicians. When you're worried about your pregnancy or have other things making you feel stressed out or anxious, you could be causing your baby's heart rate to accelerate as your own hear rate accelerates as a natural response to that stress. Your OB may suggest stress management techniques to help slow your heart rate and create a slower heart rate for your baby as well.
Contractions
When you go into labor or experience false labor, your baby's heart rate may speed up with each contraction, according to the American Congress of Obstetricians and Gynecologists. This is a normal reaction, and it usually isn't a concern unless your baby's heart rate dips dangerously low during contractions as well. As your uterus tightens with each contraction, your baby may be compressed, resulting in an increase in heart rate speed. Your OB will monitor your contractions and your baby's heart rate throughout labor to watch for signs of a possible problem.
Age and Movement
Your baby's heart rate will increase as he ages. While the old adage of a boy's hear rate being faster than a girl's isn't necessarily true, a girl's heart rate will speed up faster than a boy's during labor, notes KidsHealth.org. Otherwise, your baby's heart rate will speed up throughout your pregnancy, starting at around 80 to 85 beats per minute at five weeks gestational age and speeding up to 110 to 160 beats per minute near the end of pregnancy. Your baby's heart rate will also increase as she moves about your uterus and uses her body to flip, turn and kick you during the last months of pregnancy.
Member Comments