A transducer for detection of fetal breathing movements

A transducer for detection of fetal movements and sounds from the maternal abdominal wall is described. This transducer is based on an inductive principle. The compliance of the transducer should match the compliance of the maternal abdominal wall in order to detect the very weak acoustic signal caused by individual fetal breathing movements. The contact area of the transducer is supported on a membrane, the tension of which can be adjusted so as to match the compliances of tissue and transducer. The goal, here, is to investigate detection of fetal movements in order to monitor fetal condition and motility.<
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