Fetal heart rate acceleration in response to light stimulation as a clinical measure of fetal well-being. A preliminary report.

Numerous tests have been proposed for the assessment of fetal condition during the antenatal period. This preliminary report suggests the possibility of exposing the fetus-in-utero to alternating light during amnioscopy, with simultaneous registration of the fetal heart rate. This simple, non-invasive, inexpensive test, which may be evaluated instantaneously, shows a good correlation to the condition of the fetus and newborn, as expressed by the O.C.T. and the APGAR score respectively. The advantage of this test is that it is independent of the existence of fetal movements, as well as of the arousal state of the fetus.