[Effect of intensive cardiotocographic monitoring on the time and method of completion of labor].

The authors examined selected groups of pregnant women so as to define the influence of intensive cardiotocographic monitoring of a foetus on the time and procedure of completing a labour. Two groups of pregnant women were selected: with high risk-pregnancy and with normal pregnancy monitored cardiotocographically. The results obtained were evaluated by means of the Hammacher scale. Two control groups were also examined--one group of high-risk pregnancies and the other of normal pregnancies, both monitored in the classical way (auscultation of the heart of a foetus, amnioscopy and obstetric examination). In the group of pregnant women monitored cardiotocographically, the authors found a good tolerance of the labour lasting more than 12 hours. The condition of mothers and foeti, in spite of high-risk pregnancies, was good. This was confirmed by high evaluation of newborns by means of the Apgar scale and the level of pH in the blood in the umbilical artery. In the group monitored by classical methods, from the moment of appearing a condition threatening the foetus, there was a tendency towards a fast completion of the labor. In some cases, this was worse, not better. By comparing a procedure of completing a labour in women monitored cardiotocographically and those monitored by classical methods the authors found that in the group monitored cardiotocographically labour was completed instrumentally in 25% of women, whereas in the group monitored classically--in 39% of women, which is statistically significant.(ABSTRACT TRUNCATED AT 250 WORDS)