is it normal to hear fetal heart beats on both sides?
ok this is kinda a long question i am going to give a little history as i don’t know if it plays a part in the answer. i have a bicorneous uterus and it has also tilted way back. i have some other medical issues also and have had three previous miscarriages. for those who don’t know what the bicorneous uterus is it is where my uterus has essentially a wall down the middle that makes it like having two uterus’. i am 12 weeks along and received my doppler in the mail earlier this week and doctor told me baby was on my left side and i would be able to find the heartbeat there. have been hearing the heart regularly with a strong heart rate. well today i was playing with the doppler and i am hearing a heartbeat on my right side so i compared it to the heart rate of my left side and the numbers aren’t really matching up right side is running around 150’s and left is 160’s.
1st question is can the heart rate fluctuate?
2nd is this an indication of twins?
thanks for the answers so far thought i will add a couple more details reading some of your answers.. i have had three sonograms the problem is the first she was rushed out to an emergency but she found baby first and was located on the left then stopped the sonogram…. since then they have only looked on the left since that was the side they found he/she on. i am almost 100% sure that it woud not be the placenta or umbilical cord since everything is located on the left side outer wall…. and with the other wall down the middle makes it hard for me to understand how the doppler could get the sound waves through to hear it ….
Filed under: Fetal Doppler FAQs
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That always changes, then again its possible for it to be twins. But i think that my opinion doesnt really matter, talk to your doctor, so they can do a sonogram. youll know for sure! wish u the best!
p.s. i am sure, that the heartbeat can vary. still talk to the doc. u dont want the heartbeat to be low…considering miscarriages, and sorry for that…..
good luck,god bless
Maybe you’re listening to the baby’s heartbeat on one side and your heartbeat on the other. OR, by golly it’s twins.
The short answer is that yes, the heart rate fluctuates frequently. It can range anywhere from 120-160 beats, depending on the age of the fetus, and will rise rapidly when the baby moves. I know this because I used to have to have non-stress tests twice a week (where they hook the baby up to a heartbeat monitor and watch for the heart rate to rise at least 20 beats per minute at least 3 times in 20 minutes). That kid’s heart rate was all OVER the place. So it is more likely that you are just finding the same heart rate and it is varying, but I suppose it is possible that it’s twins. I guess you’ll have to wait until your first ultrasound to find out — good luck!
I’ve talked to a few women with bicornuate uteruses, actually (check out the ICAN Yahoo group if you want to find them). The differences in heart rate are not strange for one baby, and you may have been hearing the heartbeat on one side and the cord or placenta on the other side, but I don’t know how the bicornuate uterus might effect that. It could be an indication of twins, but it’s more likely that you were hearing different things in your uterus. You may want to mention this to your doctor at your next appointment.