Fetal Heart Tracing Interpretation, Categories, and Criteria

Fetal Heart Tracing Interpretation, Categories, and Criteria^a

Category	Description
Category I	All of the following: Baseline rate: 110-160 beats/min Baseline FHR variability: moderate Late or variable decelerations: absent Early decelerations: present or absent Accelerations: present or absent
Category II	All FHR tracings not categorized as category I or category III. Category II tracings may represent an appreciable fraction of those encountered in clinical care. Examples of category II FHR tracings include any of the following: Baseline rate Bradycardia not accompanied by absent baseline variability Tachycardia Baseline FHR variability Minimal baseline variability Absent baseline variability with no recurrent decelerations Marked baseline variability Accelerations Absence of induced accelerations after fetal stimulation Periodic or episodic decelerations Recurrent variable decelerations accompanied by minimal or moderate baseline variability Prolonged deceleration more than 2 min but less than 10 min Recurrent late decelerations with moderate baseline variabilityVariable decelerations with other characteristics such as slow return to baseline, overshoots, or “shoulders”
Category III	Either Absent baseline FHR variability and any of the following: Recurrent late decelerations Recurrent variable decelerations Bradycardia Or Sinusoidal pattern

Abbreviation: FHR, fetal heart rate.