Magnetocardiography in the diagnosis of fetal arrhythmia

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Abstract
Objective To examine the possible use of magnetocardiography in the diagnosis of fetal arrhythmias. Design Investigation of routinely examined pregnant women, as well as women referred because of arrhythmias or other reasons. Participants Sixty-three women between the 13th and 42nd week of pregnancy. Methods Recording of 189 fetal magnetocardiograms, of which 173 traces (92%) demonstrated sufficient fetal signal strength to permit evaluation. After digital subtraction of the maternal artefact, all fetal complexes were identified and the recording was examined for arrhythmic events. Results Short bradycardic episodes, not associated with any pathological condition, were found in 26% of all recordings, usually in mid-pregnancy. In 12 cases, isolated extrasystoles of no clinical importance could be identified. There were nine traces which revealed multiple arrhythmias including ventricular and supraventricular ectopic beats, bigeminy and trigeminy, sino-atrial block and atrio-ventricular conduction disturbances. Furthermore, two cases with tachycardia were found. Conclusion Magnetocardiography offers a simple noninvasive method for examination of the fetal cardiac electrophysiological signal. It may thus be useful in the identification and classification of clinically relevant arrhythmia and aid in decisions concerning treatment.

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