All pregnant women are monitored as a part of prenatal care . Early prenatal care is important because it gives your health care provider a chance to check on your health and the progress of your pregnancy, and also to keep track of your fetus's growth, movement, and heartbeat. All women need to attend their prenatal care appointments even when they are feeling healthy. Based on the results of routine prenatal care, your health care provider may suggest further tests to assess the health of the fetus . Some of these further tests and monitoring may be done with electronic equipment.
Fetal monitoring detects signs of some problems as early as possible in pregnancy.
Although this testing can provide valuable information, normal results do not guarantee a healthy baby. All pregnancies carry some degree of risk, and monitoring does not remove that risk. But it does help your health care provider to take better care of you and your baby during your pregnancy. Some of the tests used for monitoring check the fetus's movement, heartbeat, and rate of growth. Some tests show an image of the fetus in the uterus .