
Fetal Dopplers are completely safe when they are used by trained health practitioners because they have the necessary skills to use them well. However, the same cannot be said of untrained people who use at-home baby heartbeat monitor to check the heartbeat of their babies. In fact, it is advised against using these devices. If you need to listen to the heartbeat of your baby and know their general health, you are advised to see a doctor and have them do the test.
If you decide that you need to listen to your baby’s heart beat while at home, you should talk to your doctor about the same first. They may be able to give you some advice that can help with ensuring that you monitor your baby’s heartbeat safely. Below are some of the risks that are often associated with using fetal Doppler devices.
Improper use because of a lack of training
Healthcare practitioners such as nurses, doctors, and midwives usually have to undergo rigorous training before they can be considered qualified to work with patients independently without supervision. During training, these medical practitioners have to work with patients with different medical conditions under strict supervision of more qualified practitioners. By the time they get into the field, they have adequate skills and experience to work effectively and make the right decisions.
One of the areas they get training in is how to monitor fetal heartbeats to reassure pregnant women that their babies are safe. On the other hand, untrained people such as pregnant women usually don’t have the kind of training that they need to perform fetal Doppler monitoring safely and effectively. What this does is that it exposes the unborn baby to risks that you can avoid by leaving this process to the professionals.
Unnecessary exposure to waves
Ultrasound waves usually come with thermal risk to the tissues they are exposed to. The waves usually heat fetal tissue up, something that can lead to congenital defects. As such, it is often advised to only use Doppler monitoring when there is a medical problem that warrants doing so. Also, you should do so under expert supervision. Even though you will not have to have an expert around every time, during the first few times, you need to be supervised and directed by an expert. With the expert around, they will help you to keep the number of sessions and the length of each session low so that you don’t end up frying your baby in your womb.
False sense of security
Because pregnant women usually don’t have the technical and medical expert needed to use Doppler devices well, they sometimes make false conclusions, which usually give them a false sense of security. Some women are often tempted to ignore warning signs that may indicate that something is wrong with their baby because they are reassured with the results of the Doppler device. Thus, it is important to always involve a health practitioner before you make any conclusions.