Eleven parturients were studied in the active phase of labor. Fetal movements, fetal heart rate, and short-term beat-to-beat variability as well as uterine contractions were evaluated for two 40-minute recording periods before and after maternal intravenous administration of 50 mg meperidine. Meperidine depressed fetal activity and increased the duration and frequency of uterine contractions. Fetal movements were significantly reduced from 156 to 60 and their relative duration from 8.6 +/- 6.0% to 2.4 +/- 2.6% (p less than 0.01). The short-term fetal heart rate beat-to-beat variability was reduced at the baseline period 5.22 +/- 1.02 versus 4.62 +/- 1.47 (p less than 0.05) but not during uterine contractions or fetal movements. The frequency of uterine contractions increased from 3.1 +/- 0.8 to 3.7 +/- 0.7 per 10 minutes (p less than 0.01), and their relative duration from 35.3 +/- 6.9% to 40.1 +/- 5.9% (p less than 0.05).

18 healthy parturients were monitored during normal labor in order to determine the influence of uterine contractions and fetal body movements on fetal heart rate beat-to-beat variability (BTBV). The BTBV was 5.37 ± 1.28 during the baseline period and a significant increase to 6.46 ± 1.64 was found during uterine contractions (p < 0.001). The BTBV during fetal movements, 6.21 ± 2.29, did not differ significantly from the value of the baseline period.

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Thirty women were studied to examine the effect of fetal scalp stimulation on fetal heart rate (FHR) accelerations and gross body movements in quiet and active fetal behavioral states during the active phase of labor. Stimulation was performed by five consecutive tractions of the fetal scalp electrode. Fetal response in terms of fetal movements and FHR accelerations occurring within 15 seconds after stimulation was observed in all fetuses of the active state group. In the quiet state group 14 of 15 fetuses responded with body movements and in 12 fetuses FHR accelerations were observed. Subsequently, most of the fetuses returned to the quiet state. We suggest that a normal and healthy fetus is expected to respond to the fetal scalp electrode stimulation test even in the quiet behavioral state.