Wait until the doppler has a good fix before reading the display 5. Ignore the display until you can clearly hear the heartbeat, then wait for the doppler to calculate the heartbeat rate of bub. It needs to be fixed on the heartbeat for a good 10-15 seconds so it can calculate the heartrate (kind of similar to how a nurse or doctor takes your heartrate, right? they count how many beats in 10 seconds). Although you may be able to hear the heartbeat, if the display is still jumping around, then the fix is not good enough for the doppler software to calculate an accurate fetal heartrate. This is normal – the number displayed on the doppler will jump around until the doppler has a very good fix on the heartbeat. You’re worried that the doppler’s digital reading is jumping around If you’re indenting the surface of your skin, you’re probably pressing too hard. Using a doppler is about angle, not gusto ). Just touch the probe gently against your skin. It is also likely to reduce the quality of the ultrasound gel transmission and cause wastage of the gel. It won’t help at all, and it can actually make it more difficult to make the small changes in angle that can help you come upon the heartbeat. It can be tempting to press the probe into your abdomen in your hunt to find your baby’s heartbeat when using a fetal doppler. You don’t need to press down hard with the doppler probe If this is very bad, just make a mental note for next time to be gentle with the gel. If you find your doppler gets very crackly or there’s a lot of static, it can be because there’s too much air trapped in the gel and the ultrasound isn’t able to pass effectively to the doppler. Just put a glob of gel on the end of the probe. Don’t squeeze loads of gel onto your belly, and definitely don’t smear or rub it all over your belly like a moisturising cream. The ultrasound gel provided with your doppler should really last you a couple of months, depending of course on how often you’re using a fetal doppler. Make small changes in the angle of the probe, rather than moving it across your belly 2. Don’t move on til you’re sure you haven’t found it. Find a place nice and low, near your pubic bone, and then methodically change the slant of the probe by small increments (try pointing down towards your feet if you’re early on). So… in this analogy, your belly is the room, the doppler probe is the penlight and your bub’s heart is the keys! Move too fast and you’ll miss the heart altogether. More effective would be to stand in the doorway, and slowly change the direction of the beam so you’re searching methodically. The best way to find them is not to walk around the room swinging the flashlight beam. Imagine you’re standing at the entrance of a room, armed with a penlight, and you need to find your keys. Moving the doppler probe across the surface of your belly into different areas generally just means you keep passing over your baby’s heart and don’t find it. This would be the most common error that people make when using a fetal doppler at home. Moving the doppler probe around too much, rather than just angling it To try and get you off to a good start, here are our top tips for what not to do when using your doppler: 1. Although we always try to prepare you for it to be a learning curve on the first few goes, we understand that not finding your baby’s heartbeat with your doppler can cause anxiety. Here at Sweet Beats, we’ve worked out over time the most common mistakes that mums and dads-to-be make when using a fetal doppler at home. Talk to your health care provider if your measurements are out of range, or if you have concerns or questions about monitoring the fetal heart rate at home.Top 5 Mistakes Our Customers Make When Using a Fetal Doppler At Home But you may feel anxious if your baby's heart rate is outside of the normal range. Fetal heart rate monitoring doesn't pose any physical risks for you or your baby. Rarely, problems with a baby's heart rate are detected that need further monitoring or treatment. Avoid using the fetal Doppler for longer than 10 minutes.Īfter you've logged the fetal heart rate measurements, your doctor will review the results. You can adjust the probe position as needed to find the best heart signal. Note that the numbers may change slightly as you continue to listen. Log the fetal heart rate as instructed by your health care team. Angle or tilt the probe, keeping contact between your skin and the probe at all times, until you hear a galloping sound - the fetal heart rate. Then put the probe on your lower abdomen, near your pubic bone. Place a small amount of gel (Doppler gel only) on the probe at the end of the monitor. To use the monitor, you'll start by feeling your abdomen to find your baby's position.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |