Time-frequency analysis of fetal heartbeat fluctuation using wavelet transform

We examined whether the nonlinear control mechanism of the fetal autonomic nervous system would change in various fetal states. Eight thousand or more fetal heartbeats were detected from normal, hypoxemic, and acidemic fetuses. Fetal heart Doppler-signal intervals were determined in a high-precision autocorrelation method, and a time series of fetal heart rate fluctuation was obtained. The distribution of the amplitude of temporal fluctuation in the low-frequency component of fetal heart rate frequency was studied using a method of time-frequency analysis called wavelet transform. Spline 4 was used as the mother wavelet function. A gamma distribution was observed from 17 wk of gestation onward. The value of the parameter nu of this gamma distribution was approximately 1.6 and remained constant regardless of the gestational age or the time of day. The value of nu decreased significantly to 0.77 when the fetus developed acidemia and was 1.51 in hypoxemia and 1.54 in a normal condition. This study elucidates a nonlinear structure of the time series of heart rate fluctuation of the gamma distribution in the human fetus. This technique may provide a new quantitative index of fetal monitoring to diagnose fetal acidemia.