Ultrasensitive detectors to pinpoint fetal heart beat

At the University of Wisconsin-Madison, one of the most powerful magnetic detectors in the world is helping screen high-risk pregnant patients for rare but very serious fetal heart rhythm problems. The translational research program allows pediatric cardiologists and obstetricians from around the country to gather additional data and offer their patients the best treatment options. “It’s the only place in the country dedicated to evaluating rare and very serious fetal heart rhythm problems using biomagnetism,” says Dr. Ron Wakai, the professor of medical physics at the UW School of Medicine and Public Health who created the lab. “In a typical year, we see between 50 and 70 patients, the vast majority around their 25th week of pregnancy.” he added. The hearts of the fetuses referred for evaluation may skip beats, race or beat too slowly. Structural abnormalities may also affect cardiac performance. Doctors must know exactly what’s happening so they can treat accordingly. Results of the recordings, in conjunction with data obtained from current technologies such as ultrasound, allow physicians to offer appropriate treatment options – from cautiously waiting and seeing, to prescribing medications, to delivering the fetus as soon as possible. The passive detector, mounted on a track above a table upon which the patient lies, is positioned over the pregnant woman’s belly, where it picks up the faintest magnetic signals and sends the information back to a computer in an adjacent room. The safe, non-invasive test takes about an hour.