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Abstract

Context: Cardiotocography (CTG) records and monitors the fetal heart rate (FHR) electronically. This is done to assess the fetal health and look for symptoms of intrapartum hypoxia. Timely identification and early detection of fetuses at risk is one way of reducing pregnancy-related adverse outcomes.

Aims: The study aimed to screen and detect high-risk pregnancies in rural populations with probable fetal distress to ensure timely intervention and referral to tertiary health care centers through the combination of CTG and WhatsApp.

METHODOLOGY: This three-year prospective study was carried out at the Community Health Centre in Bhanpur Kalan, India. Women who had risk factors like anemia, pregnancy induced hypertension, pre-eclampsia, etc. were included in the study. Patients with gestational ages less than 30 weeks and all prenatal individuals whose inclusion criteria did not specifically include obstetric high-risk features were excluded from this study group. The printout of the report of the CTG was sent to the expert through WhatsApp. The expert, after viewing the report, decided whether the patient should be referred to tertiary care or not.

Results: During this study, 402 pregnant women were examined, and 155 had met the inclusion criteria. Among them, 151 gave consent for inclusion in the study. Out of 151 pregnant females, 149 fetuses had normal (139.6±6) FHR, while 2 had abnormal (173.5±2.1) FHR and were categorized as high-risk pregnancies.

Conclusions: Timely and proper intervention through the combination tool CTG and WhatsApp was found to be effective. It is a cost-effective way to monitor fetal well-being and reduce complications in high-risk pregnancies, leading to lower mortality rates and better healthcare among rural populations.

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