Terminal pattern: characteristics and management.

Terminal prepartum patterns from 31 patients were associated with 39% perinatal mortality rate and major degrees of perinatal asphyxia among survivors. Conditions most commonly associated with these patterns were intrauterine growth retardation, preeclampsia, and prolonged pregnancy. NST patterns in which there was absence of accelerations, absent or reduced variability, with or without variable or shallow late decelerations, portended very omnious outcomes when accompanied by absent fetal movements and/or oligohydramnios. Perinatal mortality was 39% under these circumstances. Immediate cesarean section is warranted when this situation is encountered.