How long does it take to hear a heartbeat during pregnancy
Release time : 03/15/2025 09:30:01
Fetal heart rate, or fetal heartbeat, is a crucial indicator of the baby's survival and an embodiment of excitement for many mothers.
Every expectant mother knows that the moment she hears her baby's heartbeat is one that cannot be expressed through words.
The sound, like that of a small train or a horse galloping, is the most exquisite melody in the world.
So, how long does it take to hear the heartbeat in pregnancy? Currently, Doppler ultrasound is widely used. It can detect fetal heartbeats as early as 10 weeks or 12 weeks into pregnancy.
However, some hospitals may use a standard stethoscope, and in such cases, it would take up to 17-18 weeks to track the fetal heartbeat.
Another scenario is that in early pregnancy, due to the position of the fetus or other various interference factors such as excessive fat in the mother's body, even with extremely precise instruments, it may not be possible to hear the baby's heartbeat.
Can a stethoscope hear the fetal heartbeat? A mom's forum asked if it's possible to hear the fetal heartbeat with a stethoscope. Let's find out! In fact, you can hear the fetal heartbeat around week 8 of pregnancy, but its sound is very faint, and it requires a Doppler fetal heart monitor to detect it.
It is only possible to hear the fetal heartbeat at around 17-18 weeks of pregnancy. Unless you are a professional healthcare provider, it may be necessary to carefully listen to the skin with a stethoscope for a very small chance to detect it.
Therefore, it is not advisable for expectant mothers to use a stethoscope at home to listen to the baby's heartbeat. This is because it may be difficult to clearly hear the baby's heartbeat and unable to timely assess the baby's health condition. Instead, opt for a professional fetal monitor for operation at home.
How to use an ultrasound monitor to listen to the fetal heartbeat? Some pregnant mothers, due to time constraints or other reasons, hope to be able to hear the baby's heartbeat at home.
Below, Mom's website editor will tell you how to use a fetal heart monitor to measure your baby's heartbeat at home! 1. Preparation before using fetal preference: gestational week: If you listen to your baby's heartbeat at home, it is recommended to be after 16 weeks of pregnancy.
Time: Listen for the baby's heartbeat, ideally within 30 to 60 minutes after breakfast, lunch, and dinner.
Environment: No electromagnetic or radiation disturbances around.
Coupling agent.
2. Adopting a lying down posture, expectant mothers are advised to find a comfortable, quiet, and undisturbed environment to lie flat. The head should be slightly raised, the legs should be extended, and the mood should be relaxed. Even if you are looking forward to it, do not get excited.
Simultaneously, when lying flat, the position of the fetal heartbeat is closer to the maternal abdomen wall, and the distance from the probe is also more close, making it easier to hear the fetal heartbeat.
3. Apply coupling agent. Apply a coupling agent to the belly, either water or oil. Coupling agent is applied because ultrasound easily dissipates in the air, and its function is to squeeze out the air in the skin's pores, making the probe tightly contact with the skin.
Open the fetal heart monitor and place the probe on the abdomen to locate the fetal heart.
4. Finding fetal heart position is the most challenging aspect of using Doppler fetal heart monitoring, Yet it is also a crucial step in determining whether the guardianship is successful Therefore, mothers, please take this seriously. Comprehending it will save you time when using the fetal monitor and make your experience more efficient.
Before first use, remove the battery cover and insert the battery.
Insert the headphones into the headphone jack on your computer or directly listen to them.
The probe should be pressed against the abdominal wall with a little gentle force, not just lightly pressing the belly, so that there is no air between the probe and the abdominal wall to produce noise and make the signal reception better.
Locating the fetal heart rate is most straightforward by referencing the position where the probe was placed during a hospital-based fetal heart monitoring examination. This will ensure the presence of a crisp, rhythmic sound of fetal heartbeats can be heard.
Generally, listening to the fetus for 1-2 minutes each time, calculate the number of fetal heartbeats in 1 minute, and a normal range is between 120-160 beats/minute.
If the fetal heart rate is not detected by the doctor's stethoscope, the expectant mother can move the probe around in nearby positions. The fetal heart position is irregular because the baby's position inside the womb will change.
(A) The position of the fetal heart is usually in the lower abdomen, at the midline or on either side 6 months ago.
(B) At 6 to 8 months, as the fetus grows larger, the position of the fetal heart will also ascend.
As fetal movements are usually felt as the baby's hands and feet moving, it is common for frequent fetal movement in one side to be accompanied by a fetal heartbeat in the other.
When the fetus's movements are frequent on the left side, the fetal heartbeat is usually on the right.
(C) The fetal heart sounds are transmitted from the fetus to the mother through the axillary space, so the fetal heart sounds heard most clearly on the upper part of the mother's abdominal wall.
The position of the fetus can also affect the location of the fetal heartbeat. In a breech presentation, the fetal heartbeat is located to the left or right of the navel; in a face-down presentation, the fetal heartbeat is located to the left or right of the navel.
(The blue part in the image is the navel.) If the fetus's heartbeat deviates from the probe due to twitching or other reasons, causing the fetal heartbeat signal to be interrupted or unstable, please follow these steps to relocate the fetal position.
5. After listening to the fetal heartbeat and reading the numbers, find the correct position of the fetal heartbeat. Once you hear a steady and continuous fetal heartbeat, pause for a moment to allow the fetal heart monitor probe to receive a stable and continuous fetal heartbeat signal. The displayed value at this time is considered reliable.
It's important to note that these values aren't fixed and will fluctuate slightly.
Heart rate monitoring of fetal movement is often said to be able to determine the sex of the baby, with many mothers' forum netizens hearing about it and believing in its accuracy. Let’s delve into this topic together!
Due to the fact that male babies tend to have a slower heart rate than female ones, it is generally observed that a baby's heart rate remains around 140 beats per minute during five or more prenatal examinations. Particularly, if the heart rate falls below 140 beats per minute, it is usually considered a male baby. Conversely, when the heart rate reaches around 150 beats per minute, especially above this level, it is more common in girls. The difference becomes more pronounced as the pregnancy progresses into later stages (after seven and a half months). Of course, it should not be assumed that a single prenatal examination can definitively determine gender. A consistent pattern of heart rate readings over multiple tests is necessary to accurately estimate the sex with high confidence.
Facts: 1. If a girl baby is in a state of sleep while listening to her fetal heartbeat, the fetal heart rate will be slightly lower than normal, and sometimes, a boy baby may be moving around during a doctor's assessment of the fetal heartbeat, so the fetal heart rate may be higher than normal, even surpassing 145 beats per minute. Therefore, relying solely on listening to the fetal heartbeat to determine gender lacks scientific basis.
2. The girl's heart rate is higher than the boy's at birth, but this difference is only temporary. There is no gender difference in fetal heart rates.
The speed of heartbeat is only different with gestational age.
At the approximate 5-week mark, the fetal heart rate is similar to the mother's, ranging between 80-85 beats per minute.
During the early nine weeks of pregnancy, the heart rate gradually increased to between 170 and 200 beats per minute.
During the later stages of pregnancy, this frequency gradually slows down to 120 to 160 beats per minute.
Therefore, simply relying on fetal heartbeat to determine the sex is not reliable.
Abnormal heartbeat in infants is a sign of vitality.
Many pregnant women are concerned about whether their baby's heartbeat is abnormal. If the fetal heart rate remains below 120 beats per minute for more than 10 minutes or above 160 beats per minute, it indicates an abnormal fetal heart rate.
If the fetal heart rate is < 120 beats/min or >160 beats/min, it can be repeated after 10-20 minutes interval; if it is still abnormal, suggest intrauterine fetal hypoxia; if the fetal heart rate is in abnormal range and accompanied by irregular fetal heart rhythm, it suggests that the fetal hypoxia is more serious.
Abnormal fetal heart rate is often indicative of fetal hypoxia within the uterus. The more severe the degree of abnormal fetal heart rate, the more severe the fetal hypoxia. However, not all instances of abnormal fetal heart rate are caused by hypoxia. Apart from the above conditions, the condition of the pregnant woman also affects changes in fetal heart rate. For example, if a pregnant woman has a fever, her fetal heart rate often exceeds 160 beats per minute; if she has hyperthyroidism, her own heart rate is very fast, and the fetal heart rate is often more than 160 beats per minute. If a pregnant woman takes certain medications, such as succinylcholine used for induced labor to prevent premature delivery, or albuterol (Atoll), which can cause an increase in maternal and fetal heart rates.
Once an abnormal fetal heartbeat is discovered, expectant mothers must seek medical attention immediately, without any negligence or delay.
The medical information provided in this text is for reference only.
In the event of discomfort, it is recommended to seek medical attention immediately. The diagnosis and treatment are based on the examinations conducted in a face-to-face clinic.