The most common cause of decreased variability in the fetal heart rate (FHR)that lasts 30 minutes or less is:
A)Altered cerebral blood flow.
B)Fetal hypoxemia.
C)Umbilical cord compression.
D)Fetal sleep cycles.

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

A temporary decrease in variability can occur when the fetus is in a sleep state.These sleep states do not usually last longer than 30 minutes.Altered fetal cerebral blood flow would result in early decelerations in the FHR.Fetal hypoxemia would be evidenced by tachycardia initially and then bradycardia.A persistent decrease or loss of FHR variability may be seen.Umbilical cord compression would result in variable decelerations in the FHR.

The Most Common Cause of Decreased Variability in the Fetal