Vibroacoustic Stimulation and Fetal Heart Rate in Nonstress Tests

Two methods of vibroacoustic stimulation were compared with traditional nonstress tests. Fetal heart rate tracings following stimulation had more accelerations and were of greater amplitude and duration than in the control group. The length of time required to obtain a reactive nonstress test was almost 15 minutes shorter when vibroacoustic stimulation was applied than when vibroacoustic stimulation was not used. Vibroacoustic stimulation elicited a heightened reactivity that persisted beyond the observation period in 30 of 45 (67%) of the experimental group subjects.