Many women are interested in whether it is possible to hear the fetal heartbeat at home and from when. If a mother places her hand on her belly, she will not feel the baby’s heartbeat at any stage of pregnancy. Even if you feel a pulsation in the abdomen, you should not mistake it for fetal heartbeats. Most likely, this indicates that the pressure in the aorta is increased due to hormonal changes in the woman’s body due to pregnancy.

There are several ways to listen to the heartbeat of an unborn child, but this is difficult at home. As you know, heartbeats appear in the fifth week, but at this time an ultrasound will be required. You can hear the baby’s heartbeat at home at a later date, but without special equipment this is not easy to do. Fortunately, today it is not a problem to purchase such devices for home use.

This device can be used from 12 weeks. It is sold in a pharmacy or specialty store. There are different models of Dopplers available: ones that are simpler for listening to heartbeats in headphones and those that count the number of heartbeats. They may differ in appearance, display quality, and set of functions. The main components of most devices:

• Display. It comes in different sizes and is most often colored. The simplest models do not have it; only a sound speaker is provided.
• Speaker. Sound quality varies depending on the sensor and signal processing.
• Battery. Allows the device to operate continuously from 3 to 15 hours, depending on the model.

Before purchasing such a device, many parents have a question about whether they will harm their unborn child if they periodically listen to the beating of his heart. An ultrasound device is considered harmless, but it is possible that the fetus feels it and can move in the other direction when trying to listen. In this case, it is better not to torture the baby and wait until the time when he is calm. To avoid stress in the fetus, you do not need to listen to its heartbeat for a long time. Doctors recommend not delaying the procedure for more than ten minutes.

If there is such a device at home, mothers feel calm, having the opportunity at any time to make sure that everything is fine with the child

These portable ultrasonic detectors are in great demand today due to their convenience. Among the obvious advantages of the device, the following should be highlighted:

• ease of use;
• the ability to hear the fetal heartbeat at 12 weeks;
• an opportunity for the expectant mother to hear how the baby’s heart works, without assistants.

It also has disadvantages:

• quite high price;
• restrictions on use (doctors advise not to use it for a long time and often).

How to operate the device

In the early stages, it is very difficult to check the fetal heartbeat at home. You need to start listening to it from the 12th week. During this period, the sensor is placed in the lower abdomen, right next to the pubic bone. As the fetus grows, the listening position will shift towards the navel.

Before starting the procedure, you need to apply a special gel to the area where the sensor is placed. It is advisable to keep the bladder full. The sensor must be moved slowly. To better catch the signal, you need to properly fix the handle of the device.

The heartbeat should be loud, the heart rate should be twice as fast as that of the mother - up to 160 beats per minute. Heart rate may vary throughout the day and depending on the activity of the fetus.

If you can't hear your heartbeat

There are times when the mother does not hear the fetal heartbeat. There is no need to panic ahead of time. There may be several reasons:

• fullness – if there is a fat layer, listening can be difficult;
• the chorion is attached to the back wall (if it is located on the front wall, it is much easier to listen to the heartbeat);
• the fetus changes its position, so it is difficult to find a heartbeat even in the absence of excess weight.

Obstetric stethoscope or phonendoscope

On the one hand, this method is available to everyone: you can buy this tube at any pharmacy for little money. On the other hand, it is not easy to count heartbeats using this tool at home. For this you need an assistant, because you can’t do it alone. At the same time, he must have skills that he most often does not have. Moreover, you need to listen to tones at certain points. Correctly counting the number of beats will be interfered with by extraneous noises (mother’s heartbeat, contraction of the muscles of the intestinal walls and other sounds), which you need to learn to distinguish from the fetal heartbeat.

Before 25 weeks, it is unlikely that you will be able to hear the heart of an unborn child at home.

Putting your ear to your stomach

This is the simplest and most accessible, but also the most ineffective way. Difficulties are possible if a woman is overweight. You need to listen at a certain point, which depends on how the fetus is located in the uterus:

• beating below the navel if the fetus lies head down;
• the heart can be heard above the navel if the presentation is breech;
• If the pregnancy is multiple, the heartbeat of each fetus can be heard in different places.

You can listen to the heartbeat of the unborn baby by placing your ear to the stomach only in the later stages (more than 30 weeks)

When is it necessary to calculate fetal heart rate at home?

There are situations when it is necessary to monitor the contractions of the unborn child’s heart every day.

1. For bloody discharge at any stage of gestation. The most common cause of this phenomenon is placental abruption. Strict fetal monitoring is usually necessary throughout pregnancy.
2. The uterus has increased tone. In such a situation, the blood vessels of the placenta are compressed, and this can lead to impaired blood circulation in it, while the fetus does not receive sufficient oxygen and nutrition.
3. If there is a threat of miscarriage, you need to constantly monitor the fetal heartbeat at home in order to seek medical help in time.
4. For anemia in a pregnant woman. In this case, the mother usually has low hemoglobin, which means that the fetus does not receive the required amount of nutrients that are carried by the blood.
5. In case of illness of the expectant mother, which can cause a deficiency of oxygen and nutrients.

Conclusion

If a pregnant woman wants to listen to the heartbeat of her unborn baby, she can do this at home using a modern portable device - a fetal doppler. But is it worth focusing on this if there are no special indications. Shouldn't you entrust the control of the fetal heart rate to doctors who will do it much better?

I'll tell you the backstory.
Last summer my son suffered from pneumonia. A mild form, a small area (as the doctor put it), the temperature was 37 and 5 on the first day, 36 and 9 on the second, then 36 and 6. By the way, I immediately had a cough, but it was somehow strange and not the same as usual, that I immediately rushed to the doctor and she sent us for an x-ray, then we went to the hospital. It doesn’t seem to be a big deal, but now every acute respiratory infection I’m afraid it’s pneumonia. And our local doctor is a big fan of antibiotics. I usually refuse, but sometimes she persuades me using intimidation) I try not to go to the clinic again. Now my son is sick again, last night he began to cough with great difficulty, out of fear I gave him an antibiotic and today we went to the clinic. Our doctor was replaced by another. She said that there was no need to give an antibiotic, there was nothing wrong, the lungs were clean.
Our doctor usually prescribes antibiotics right away. And when he listens, he almost always hears something. For example, if the cough is about to start and it turns out to be a kind of wheezing in the chest, but then there is free coughing, she begins to lament that oh-oh, what a terrible cough. This kind of cough doesn’t scare me, but I’m still not a doctor, I don’t know what it’s like “inside”, but I don’t trust the doctor completely either.
Now I would like to ask you, mom, if anyone uses a phonendoscope at home on their own? I googled it, it seems like it’s quite possible, especially when you practice on a specific person and you get used to their breathing and begin to understand it.
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The first time to clearly hear the heartbeat of a child in the womb is an exciting and amazing moment for every woman, and even for a man.

This is not only the satisfaction of the mother's need to establish communication, but also a need that is able to make the doctor understand many things about the state of a person's health.

Every expectant mother strives to solve the question of how to listen to the fetal heartbeat at home, since for her this is a direct opportunity to make sure that the child is growing correctly.

For the expectant mother, several different methods and methods are open to which you can hear how a person’s heart beats.

There are standard methods that can be carried out in all modern clinics, and there are methods that can be carried out at home.

Women who are expecting a baby should definitely talk to their doctor. It is a special relationship between patient and doctor that is very important.

Pregnancy is a huge responsibility and a very important period of life, which should be entrusted not just to a professional, but also to a qualified attending physician.

It is very important to talk to your doctor about your baby's development and also find out what methods are available to listen to your baby's heartbeat.

If the doctor has been selected as carefully as possible, he will not only competently manage the pregnancy, but will also patiently answer numerous questions from the expectant mother. A good doctor will definitely tell you when the baby’s first heartbeat can be heard and invite you to an appointment.

The first audition must be done in a doctor's office. The specialist will explain what normal heartbeat exists at a given time, as well as how to listen to the heart yourself at home.

Most doctors prescribe listening to the heart during the 9-10 week period and before birth. It is at this moment that you can prepare numerous questions that you plan to ask a specialist.

It is very important to know how listening is carried out, for what purpose this event is being carried out, and also what are the norms for the heartbeat of the fetus in the womb.

Don’t forget that listening to a heart is a rather emotional and exciting visit.. It is for this reason that you should take the future dad or another relative with you to the appointment.

The first heart sounds at a doctor's office can be heard when a nurse or doctor uses a device such as a fetal doppler.

This is a device that uses sound waves to amplify the heartbeat.

During such an examination, you need to lie down on the examination table, after which the doctor runs a small sensor across the abdomen.

This is a unique procedure and a very sensitive device with which you can listen to the heart with a complete absence of any painful sensations for a minimum period of 9-12 weeks.

To hear the heartbeat earlier, you can use a procedure such as ultrasound. This is an ideal opportunity to hear the heart at 7-8 weeks, that is, around the time the fetus begins to feel a heartbeat.

The procedure at this time is prescribed infrequently, usually only if there are certain suspected risks for the woman and the fetus. In normal situations, the procedure is carried out no earlier than 10-12 weeks.

A variety of heart listening devices may be used in the doctor's office. In addition to the above, we can note such a device as a stethoscope.

Unlike other devices, this device has reduced power ratings. The device is used no earlier than in the second trimester of pregnancy.

Many doctors and obstetricians, if necessary, can use a device such as a fetoscope to resolve the issue of how to hear the baby’s heart.

If ultrasound and other serious methods cannot be used at home, then other devices can be purchased and listening can be carried out at home.

Before using one or another home method, you should definitely consult with your doctor about how to listen to the fetal heartbeat.

Home listening options

There are quite a lot of methods and methods that allow you to listen to a baby’s heart at home, under normal conditions. Here are the most popular and effective ones.

If you want to listen to the baby's heart at home, many women wonder whether it is possible to hear the fetal heartbeat with a stethoscope.

The answer can be positive. This is one of the easiest ways to listen to the fetal heartbeat in normal home conditions.

Around the 18th week of pregnancy, the heartbeat becomes strong and pronounced enough to be heard through a stethoscope.

The device is very easy to use; just place it on your stomach and listen. To find the place where the heart can be heard most clearly, you may have to move the device around your stomach for a while. A little patience and you can enjoy the sounds of your baby's heart.

To achieve a positive result, it is worth purchasing a high-quality stethoscope from a trusted seller. In modern pharmacies you can purchase devices from different manufacturers, so during the purchasing process it is worth consulting with a specialist.

Many mothers are interested in the question of whether it is possible to hear the fetal heartbeat with a phonendoscope.. This is an even easier to use device that is familiar to every person.

One part of the device is inserted into the ears, the other is applied to the stomach. If you find the right place correctly, you can hear a clear heartbeat.

Modern innovative technologies provide the opportunity for future parents to hear the baby’s heartbeat without any effort.

There are several different modern applications that can be purchased at low cost and downloaded to your smartphone to listen to your heartbeat yourself.

There are also more advanced applications with which you can not only listen to the heartbeat, but record it to let your loved ones listen to it or just keep it as a souvenir.

To listen to your baby's heartbeat at home, you can purchase an inexpensive heart monitor.. This is a relatively small device that can be used at home.

A heart monitor is a relatively new, compact and functional device that is an optimal alternative to visiting a doctor. If the expectant mother is prone to worrying about her unborn baby, using the device will help calm her down.

You need to know that monitors of this type are not as powerful as the devices used in modern clinics. They are not able to detect the baby's heartbeat before five months of pregnancy.

Before purchasing a home heart measurement device, be sure to consult with your doctor. It is also important after purchase to strictly adhere to the instructions for use.

You can listen to a child’s heart without the use of special drugs; you just need to choose a quiet time and put your ear to the stomach of someone close to you.

This is one of the simplest, most accessible and at the same time effective ways to solve the question of whether it is possible to feel the heartbeat of the fetus through the stomach, simply by putting your ear to it. There are no difficulties here, with the exception of the excess weight of the expectant mother.

For listening, you need to choose a place that directly depends on the position of the fetus. If the baby is lying head down, the beat can be heard slightly below the navel; with a breech presentation, the heart can be heard in the area slightly above the navel.

During multiple pregnancy, the heartbeat can be heard anywhere.

Before listening to the heart at home, it is worth learning about the main factors that can affect the sound.

Even if you use modern devices correctly during the listening process, there are many different factors that can prevent you from hearing the fetal heartbeat.

First of all, this is the position of the fetus and the weight of the expectant mother. All this affects the position of the fetus, as well as whether or not the heartbeat can be clearly heard.

During pregnancy, you should not be afraid of being suspicious. At the slightest suspicion of a problem, for example, if the heartbeat is difficult to hear, you should immediately consult a doctor.

The normal fetal heart rate by week is more accurately determined, but on average the fetal heart rate is 120-160 beats. Some fluctuations of 10-15 beats in one direction or another per minute are acceptable.

It all depends on the position and activity of the fetus at one time or another. Particular attention is paid to heart rate during labor. It is normal for the number of contractions to increase as the uterus contracts.

If at this moment there is a decrease in heart rate, this may be evidence of possible hypoxia, fetal or placental insufficiency, and can also be observed in full compliance with the standards if the child simply has a pelvic position.

Studies of cardiac activity using a variety of methods are carried out both throughout the entire period of pregnancy and during labor.

This is an ideal opportunity to assess the general condition of the baby, as well as begin treatment as early as possible if a possible pathology is detected.

Tracking the number of heartbeats is required not only for aesthetic pleasure, but also for this process there is a certain necessity.

Among the situations in which it is necessary to constantly monitor the baby’s heartbeat, the following can be noted:

An examination of this kind is a necessity for all mothers who have pathologies that can cause a lack of oxygen and beneficial microelements.

To raise a healthy baby, you need to constantly monitor the health of his heart. There are many different things you can do to help your baby's heart grow healthy and strong.

First of all, you need to completely and unconditionally give up bad habits - alcohol, nicotine and drugs.

You need to take folic acid, which will help the child develop normally. You should watch your diet, eat only healthy foods and avoid caffeine.

It is worth familiarizing yourself with all the risk factors. While you can't wait to hear a healthy fetal heartbeat, it's worth first being aware of the potential risks associated with using a heart monitor designed to monitor your baby's basic cardiac activity.

The main disadvantage is that the sound of a healthy heartbeat can lead to an unreasonable feeling of complete security in pregnant women.

For example, if a mother does not feel well, but still hears the fetus’s heartbeat, she may postpone visiting the doctor.

It is necessary to listen to your body and contact your doctor at the very first symptoms of general malaise. You cannot rely entirely on heart monitors used at home.

Moreover, the presence of such a monitor in the room can seriously increase a woman's overall stress level.

It is important to get close to your child. With your doctor's permission, you can start listening to the fetal heartbeat regularly. This is a special emotional feeling that will allow you to get closer to your child.

To feel intimacy, you should relax, try taking a warm bath and talk a little with your tummy. In the later weeks of pregnancy, the baby will begin to react in a special way to the mother's voice and begin to feel her mood.

Conclusion

If the expectant mother wants to listen to her baby's heartbeat from time to time, if she needs it, this can be done in different ways.

To have a basic understanding of the child’s condition and the course of pregnancy, it is worth using these methods.

At the same time, a home examination should in no case replace a full medical examination, which is prescribed by a doctor at certain times.

Before you use a system to listen to your heartbeat, you should try several methods and settle on the most suitable one. Dad should also be involved in listening to the heartbeat, this will make the moment special for the whole family.

The heart appears in the human embryo in the fourth week of pregnancy and is a hollow tube that is already contracting. Already from the 5th week, during an ultrasound of the uterus, you can listen and count heartbeats.

From the 15th week, the doctor listens to the fetal heartbeat using an obstetric stethoscope and continues to do this throughout pregnancy and especially during childbirth.

What is it for?

The heart performs a very important function in the human body: it provides all organs and tissues with nutrients and oxygen, which are carried by the blood through the blood vessels.

Improper functioning of the heart leads to oxygen starvation of the body.

In the fetal body, the heart performs exactly the same function. The fetal circulatory system is very complex. Given the need to obtain nutrients and oxygen from the mother's blood, the baby's heart functions for a long time with open additional holes, which must close by the time of birth.

Fetal heart development

By the number of fetal heartbeats, many disorders of its condition, problems with the placenta and membranes can be indirectly determined. Both increased and decreased heart rate requires medical attention. The child’s heart signals problems that only a doctor can understand. Timely and correct treatment will help avoid fetal hypoxia.

Every pregnant woman should compare the number of heartbeats of her child with the normal heartbeat; hearing the baby’s heartbeat even at home is currently not a problem. The normal number of heartbeats depends on the stage of pregnancy.

The number of heartbeats depending on the stage of pregnancy.

Methods for measuring the heart rate of an unborn child

In order to hear the fetal heartbeat in medical institutions, the following methods are used:

The table shows a comparison of prices of several clinics where ultrasound and CTG of the fetus can be performed.

Methods for calculating heart rate at home

Situations in which it is necessary to listen and count the fetal heartbeat daily may arise in the following conditions:

What to do if the indicators are not normal?

When, during a visit to the doctor or at home, you independently recorded a decrease below 120 beats per minute or an increase above 160 beats per minute in the fetal heart rate, the first thing the mother needs to do is calm down. Stress can harm a child.

If changes are recorded at home, an urgent ultrasound of the fetus and uterus will be required to determine their condition.

A change in the fetal heart rate in any direction requires immediate medical attention and hospitalization.

An increase in the number of heart contractions is most often associated with fetal hypoxia; after some time, without treatment, a decrease in the number of heart contractions begins. Therefore, it is very important to follow all medical recommendations. Timely and correct treatment, strict adherence to bed rest will help maintain the baby’s health.

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Young mothers listen to their body and analyze all the changes that occur in it. The first signs of pregnancy, especially if a woman is carrying a child for the first time, are very important and everyone experiences these feelings with a degree of joy. The baby's heartbeat indicates his vitality, organ function and health. That is why many expectant mothers are interested in the question: how to hear the fetal heartbeat at home? Is it even possible to do this and how not to harm the child? We will answer this and other questions that concern future parents.

Why is it important to listen to the work of the heart?

First, let’s determine: why do you need to regularly listen to the baby’s heartbeat? Is it necessary? What does it mean? There are several reasons why this is absolutely necessary:

1. Confirmation of pregnancy. What time can you hear the fetal heartbeat for the first time? This can be done at 5-6 weeks of pregnancy, just when the expectant mother goes for an ultrasound for the first time. It is at this stage of development that the heart forms and begins to beat actively. If there is no knocking, this indicates the absence of a fertilized egg, and therefore pregnancy. Silence also indicates a frozen pregnancy, when the fetus stops developing and dies.
2. Assessment of the child's health and condition. Throughout pregnancy, starting from the first study, the baby's heart is regularly monitored. If the heart function is constantly high, even at rest, this indicates placental insufficiency. The opposite situation indicates a deterioration in the child’s condition and gradual death.
3. Child development and diagnostics of parameters during labor. During the period of delivery, it is necessary to constantly listen to the baby’s heartbeat, because in the process there is a lack of oxygen and strong pressure on the fetus. The heart and blood vessels throughout the body are under heavy load, which is why it is so important to listen to the heartbeat to prevent hypoxia in the child.

Methods of listening to the heartbeat

• In the first place will, of course, be ultrasound, which is used to visually assess the embryo and fetus, as well as the condition of the placenta. The tone and heart rate of the fetal egg are studied in particular detail. Using ultrasound, various infectious diseases, heart defects, and other abnormalities in the development of the baby’s organs are predicted.
• Cardiotocography, which is briefly called CTG. The second most effective method after ultrasound. With its help, the activity of the fetus and the work of the heart are recorded both at rest and during periods of mobility. It should be noted that the first procedure is done at 32 weeks or more. During this period, phases of rest and activity of the child are formed, in which the work of the heart is easily audible.
• Echocardiography, like the previous study, focuses specifically on the heart, and not on the general condition of the child. Such an examination is done from the 18th to the 32nd week of pregnancy for special indications, for example, heart disease, infections in the uterus, pregnancy after 38 years, delayed development of the child.
• Auscultation. Is it possible to hear the heartbeat of a pregnant fetus with a stethoscope? Definitely yes, this procedure is called “auscultation”. It uses not an ordinary device, but an obstetric one, which is more accurate and sensitive. Using the procedure, the position of the child and the rhythm and frequency of the heartbeat are determined.

All these methods can only be implemented in equipped premises; all require consultation and assistance from specialists. Expectant mothers are interested in the question: how to hear the fetal heartbeat at home? This is intimate and something very close that connects mom (dad) and child. Therefore, many future parents want to hear their baby not only in the presence of a doctor.

Fetal Doppler

How to hear the fetal heartbeat at home? Let's put the Doppler in first place, which is the most common device. It can be used from the 12th week of pregnancy, purchased at the pharmacy. Completely different models are produced - from simple to advanced. The first option involves listening to the heartbeat using headphones in which the number of beats can be heard. The device consists of:

• from the display, which in new models is color, in simple copies it is not at all;
• a speaker that conducts sound and processes it, bringing it to the ears of parents;
• battery, which allows the device to operate for up to 15 hours.

The device allows you to hear the fetal heartbeat at home quickly and clearly, but many people wonder about its effect on the child. There is no reason to worry, so you can safely use the device without worrying that it will cause harm. The difficulty is that the child can feel the operation of the device and change the location, which will change the indicators and affect the result.

Phonendoscope

Surely every family has such a device lying around at home; many have it left over from their grandmothers, because they used to listen to the pulse when measuring blood pressure, when the devices were still mechanical. Time passes, technologies change and the question arises: is it possible to hear the fetal heartbeat using a phonendoscope? Of course, you can, it is an analogue of an obstetric stethoscope, which, by the way, can also be purchased at a pharmacy. Both devices are easy to use; you just need to apply them to the surface of the abdomen. The difficulty lies in the fact that in addition to the work of the child’s heart, there are other sounds - contractions of the uterus, the work of the intestines or the work of the mother’s heart. It is very difficult to count the number and rhythm of contractions; you need help and qualifications, which are often not available.

Using the method manually

The most common question from expectant parents is: is it possible to hear the fetal heartbeat with your ear? It is possible, but it is absolutely impossible to talk about specific indicators and the accuracy of the results. If the expectant mother is overweight, then the heartbeat will probably not be heard. Another difficulty is that you need to listen at a certain point, it cannot be determined in general, it is individual and depends on the child’s location:

• If the child is lying upside down, then you need to listen below the navel.
• If the child is positioned at the level of the pelvis, then listening occurs above the navel.
• If the pregnancy is multiple, then knocking can be heard at different points.

What to do if you can't hear your heartbeat?

Don't worry ahead of time. We have determined how to hear the fetal heartbeat at home, but let us remind you that all methods are inaccurate. Therefore, the child’s heartbeat may not be heard. There are several reasons for this phenomenon:

• excess weight of the mother, in which the fat layer interferes with hearing and creates interference;
• the baby's membrane is attached to the back wall of the uterus, while listening through the abdomen becomes worse;
• The child's activity and constant change of location also affect audibility.

When should you count the rhythm?

There are cases when it is necessary to constantly monitor the child’s heart function. In such situations, it is necessary to listen daily:

1. A disease of the mother that leads to oxygen starvation of the child.
2. Increased tone of the uterus compresses the placenta and disrupts blood circulation, resulting in the fetus receiving little nutrients and oxygen.
3. Bloody discharge and the presence of menstruation during pregnancy at any stage. Discharge may indicate placental abruption, so the dynamics of the heartbeat are monitored daily.
4. Anemia of the expectant mother, in which the hemoglobin level is low, so the fetus needs more useful elements.