Fetal ecg monitoring

Abstract

A method for fetal monitoring includes acquiring electrical signals from a set of electrodes, for example, a set of surface electrodes applied to a maternal abdominal region. The electrical signals are analyzed, including by performing a morphological analysis of fetal electrocardiogram signals. A clinical indicator is then determined from a result of performing the morphological analysis.

1 - 28 . (canceled) 
     
     
         29 . A non-invasive method for diagnosing a biological condition of a pregnant female or a fetus therein, said method comprising the steps of:
 a) measuring fetal electrical activity via a plurality of electrodes adapted for attachment to a maternal skin surface, the plurality of electrodes in association with a garment adapted for wearing around the torso of a pregnant female and configured in a predetermined pattern for detecting at least one physiological parameter of the fetus regardless of the position of the fetus within the pregnant female; and   b) comparing the measured fetal electrical activity with one or more references to determine a biological condition in the pregnant female, the fetus, or both.   
     
     
         30 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein the fetal electrical activity is indicative of fetal cardiac activity, fetal brain activity, fetal body position, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         31 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein the measuring step includes detecting one or more morphological patterns in the fetal electrical activity. 
     
     
         32 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein the comparing step includes comparing the one or more morphological patterns in the fetal electrical activity to one or more reference patterns. 
     
     
         33 . The method of  claim 31 , wherein the one or more morphological patterns in the fetal electrical activity include the ST segment, the QT interval, the R-peak, the entropy of a sequence of segment classifications, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         34 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein the biological condition in the pregnant female is chorioamnionitis, preeclampsia, inflammation, infection, intrapartum fever, or any combination thereof. 
     
     
         35 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein the biological condition in the fetus is fetal cardiac arrhythmia, fetal hypoxia, fetal hypoxemia, fetal metabolic acidosis, fetal infection, fetal neuronal injury, or any combination thereof. 
     
     
         36 . The method of  claim 35 , wherein the fetal infection is sepsis. 
     
     
         37 . The method of  claim 35 , wherein the fetal neuronal injury is cerebral palsy. 
     
     
         38 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein the result of the comparison is a difference between the fetal electrical activity and the one or more references. 
     
     
         39 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein the result of the comparison is a substantial similarity between the fetal electrical activity and the one or more references. 
     
     
         40 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein the plurality of electrodes comprise on or more dry electrodes. 
     
     
         41 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein the plurality of electrodes comprise one or more gel-adhesive electrodes. 
     
     
         42 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein the plurality of electrodes comprise at least one dry electrode and at least one gel-adhesive electrode. 
     
     
         43 . The method of  claim 29 , wherein at least one of the plurality of electrodes is a collecting electrode producing a collecting electrode signal and at least one of the plurality of electrodes is reference electrode producing a reference electrode signal, and wherein the at least one collecting electrode and the at least one reference electrode are associated with the garment such that they are disposed on different sides of the torso when the garment is worn around the torso of the pregnant female. 
     
     
         44 . The method of  claim 43 , wherein the at least one collecting electrode is associated with the garment for placement within an abdominal region of the torso and the at least one reference electrode is associated with the garment for placement within a lumbar region of the torso. 
     
     
         45 . The method of  claim 43 , wherein the at least one collecting electrode is associated with the garment for placement within a lumbar region of the torso and the at least one reference electrode is associated with the garment for placement within an abdominal region of the torso. 
     
     
         46 . The method of  claim 43 , wherein the at least one collecting electrode is associated with the garment for placement on a left side of the torso and the at least one reference electrode is associated with the garment for placement on a right side of the torso. 
     
     
         47 . The method of  claim 43 , wherein the at least one collecting electrode is associated with the garment for placement on a right side of the torso and the at least one reference electrode is associated with the garment for placement on a left side of the torso. 
     
     
         48 . The method of  claim 43  wherein the at least one collecting electrode is associated with the garment for placement a left side of the torso, and the at least one reference electrode is associated with the garment for placement within an abdominal region of the torso, the lumbar region of the torso, or a combination thereof. 
     
     
         49 . The method of  claim 43 , wherein the at least one collecting electrode is associated with the garment for placement a right side of the torso, and the at least one reference electrode is associated with the garment for placement within an abdominal region of the torso, the lumbar region of the torso, or a combination thereof.