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Fetal magnetoencephalography: a non-invasive method for the assessment of fetal neuronal maturation

  1. Ekkehard Schleussner1,*,
  2. Uwe Schneider1,
  3. Sylvia Kausch1,
  4. Christiane Kähler1,
  5. Jens Haueisen2,
  6. Hans-Joachim Seewald1

Article first published online: 22 DEC 2003

DOI: 10.1111/j.1471-0528.2001.00292.x

Issue

BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology

BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology

Volume 108, Issue 12, pages 1291–1294, December 2001

Additional Information

How to Cite

Schleussner, E., Schneider, U., Kausch, S., Kähler, C., Haueisen, J. and Seewald, H.-J. (2001), Fetal magnetoencephalography: a non-invasive method for the assessment of fetal neuronal maturation. BJOG: An International Journal of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, 108: 1291–1294. doi: 10.1111/j.1471-0528.2001.00292.x

Author Information

  1. 1

    Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany

  2. 2

    Biomagnetic Centre, Department of Neurology, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Germany

**Dr E. Schleussner, Department of Obstetrics, Friedrich Schiller University Jena, Bachstrasse18, 07740 Jena, Germany.

Publication History

  1. Issue published online: 22 DEC 2003
  2. Article first published online: 22 DEC 2003
  3. Accepted 24 July 2001

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Objective To assess the maturation of auditory evoked cortical responses in the human fetus using fetal magnetoencephalography.

Design Prospective case series over a three-year period.

Setting Antenatal clinics, university hospital.

Population Singleton pregnancies at 29–40 weeks of gestation.

Methods We used a 31-channel-SQUID-biomagnetometer in a magnetically-shielded room to perform fetal magnetoencephalography. To record auditory evoked fields from the fetal brain we applied 500 monotonal bursts generated by a computerised sound generator directly to the maternal abdominal wall near the fetal head. The continuously recorded data sets were analysed stepwise using a specially developed heart artefact rejection software, Fourier filtering, principle component analysis and half split analysis of the averaged data.

Results In 36 of 64 examinations we detected signals of auditory evoked fields comparable to the P2m component in adults. The earliest recording succeeded in the 29th gestational week. The latencies of the auditory evoked responses declined during the third trimester from 300ms to nearly 150ms at term. The maturation of different components of the auditory evoked field could be demonstrated from the 31st gestational week onwards.

Conclusion The maturation of a fetal auditory cortical function using fetal magnetoencephalography could be assessed directly for the first time. We believe that this method will add information to current indirect methods of assessing the normal maturation of the human fetal brain.

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