Childbirth monitoring technology has barely changed since the 1960s

A wonderful feature from one of VitalTrace's clinical and commercial advisors, Vinayak Smith, on the role of innovative technologies to reduce the risk of litigation in obstetrics!

“Cardiotocography (CTG) has been used for foetal heartrate (FHR) surveillance since the 1970s, as a means of detecting foetal hypoxia and guiding clinical decisions around delivery timing.

Despite the length of its usage, there is yet to be convincing evidence that CTG reduces birth asphyxia, stillbirths, caesareans or instrumental deliveries.

Although the technology is good at providing reassurance when foetal heartrates are ‘normal’, it is less useful at working out the prognosis of ‘abnormal’ heartrates, explains Dr. Vinayak Smith, of Monash University and the Royal Australian and New Zealand College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.

“It is not easy for two clinicians to agree or interpret the same CTG output the same way,” said Dr. Smith ahead of the Obstetric Malpractice Conference.

“Heartrates which look normal are easy to trust, whereas abnormal ones could mean anything. The CTG doesn’t tell us how worried we should be when a heartrate doesn’t look quite right.

“As a result, FHR red flags can be wrongfully dismissed by the clinician, leading to ‘preventable’ delivery complications or, in extreme cases, foetal deaths.

“Conversely, false alarms can lead to unnecessary clinical intervention and greater numbers of (precautionary) C-sections – a procedure which is risky for both mother and baby.”

Aside from the risk of healthcare complications, CTG reliability issues expose clinicians to legal culpability.

With 20 percent of obstetrics claims involving CTG – and obstetrics accounting for a significant proportion of medico legal disputes – it is widely agreed that better foetal monitoring solutions are needed.”

See the full article here.

VitalTrace is proud to announce it is one of 9 WA innovators and start ups to have received support from the Western Australian government, under the Future Health Research and Innovation (FHRI) Fund.

The Innovation Seed Fund is intended to bridge the gap in access to early-stage funding for WA start-ups to be more competitive in securing follow-on funding and develop into sustainable businesses, create high-level health sector jobs and enhance the production/manufacturing capacity of WA.

This project will fund the development of a commercialisation ready and clinically compatible product to improve maternal and fetal health outcomes during childbirth.

Medical Research Minister Stephen Dawson said “[VitalTrace has] the potential to change lives, and this funding will help them secure capital and develop into sustainable businesses.”

Read more here

Our first peer-reviewed journal article has been published in The SMFM Pregnancy Journal — the official open-access journal of the Society for Maternal-Fetal Medicine (SMFM) based in Washington, DC.

In collaboration with The University of Western Australia, our study demonstrates the capability of our technology, DelivAssure, in detecting early signs of fetal lactic acidosis, highlighted by the strong correlation between sensor current and venous blood lactate levels.  

We're proud to contribute to the growing body of evidence aimed at improving outcomes for mothers and babies — DelivAssure has the potential to revolutionise intrapartum care by enabling crucial early detection and management of fetal asphyxia during labor and delivery.

📰 Read the full article here: https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/10.1002/pmf2.70017

We're incredibly grateful to our collaborators, clinical partners, and the SMFM editorial team for supporting this work.