Information for Sonotrax Fetal Doppler

Sonotrax Fetal Dopplers allow you or your doctor or midwife to hear your baby's heartbeat, but you shouldn't forgo medical advice or treatment if you buy one for personal use.

The Sonotrax Fetal Doppler is a medical-grade fetal heartbeat monitor that purports to detect a baby's heartbeat "as early as 10 to 12 weeks." It comes in two different versions and is marketed toward both doctors and midwives, but some parents-to-be purchase such monitors for personal use.

Identification

Fetal dopplers detect and monitor a fetus's heartbeat. The Sonotrax is one brand.

Geography

Sonotrax Fetal Doppler Systems is based in Canada. The heartbeat monitors are available online and at a number of stores in Canada. As of February 2010, you could find them at only one store in the U.S.: Doctors Toy Store in Hallandale, Fla., according to the Sonotrax website.

Types

The Sonotrax Fetal Dopplers come in both basic and pro models. Both come with waterproof probes--the device that picks up the heartbeat through the abdomen. As of Feb. 20101, the basic retails for $199 on the Sonotrax website, and the pro, which comes with a backlight and built-in recorder, sells for $249.

Considerations

Sonotrax also sells a pro combo, for vascular and OB-GYN use, which comes with three different probes. According to Sonotrax, you also can record your baby's heartbeat onto a PC using one of the Doppler systems and instructions available on the company's website.

Use

A nurse or OB-GYN uses a fetal heartbeat monitor at a pregnant woman's prenatal appointments and during labor to ensure there is a heartbeat and the rate is within the normal baseline range (110 to 160 beats per minutes, according to Tammey J. Dickerson, RNC-OB, BSN, FMC, CLNC.) Some people also buy such monitors for personal use within their homes.

Warning

Doctors are concerned people are relying on their personal fetal Doppler devices to assure them their babies are fine; in some cases there may be a problem and medical attention may be necessary, according to a 2009 article in the British Medical Journal. "In untrained hands it is more likely that blood flow through the placenta or the maternal aorta or iliac vessels will be heard" rather than the true heartbeat, according to the article.

References

• Sonotrax
• British Medical Journal: Caution with home fetal Doppler devices
• Dickerson Legal Nurse: Fetal Monitoring in a Nutshell