The Doppler Heartbeat Monitor is and electronic device also known as Doppler fetal monitor or Doppler fetal heart rate monitor or sometimes simply as the Doppler. This is a device that allows the user, as well as others around, to hear the heartbeat of the fetus inside the mother’s womb.
Originally intended for use by health care professionals, now home devices for personal use are also available. This way, pregnant women or expectant parents can reassure themselves that their unborn baby’s is healthy and the heart is beating at the rate it should.
Many different manufacturers make different types of Doppler devices; some with build in speakers and others that can be used with the help of earphones. There are also the waterproof types of dopplers available that can be used for water births and so on. Doppler displays can vary: while some devices calculate and tell you the baby’s heart rate, others simply let you hear, count and calculate the heart beats on your own.
Where to get a Doppler Heartbeat Monitor
Several manufacturers sell doppler devices online. Some supermarkets such as Wal-Mart could also stock these. You may or may not find them in your local pharmacy. Typically an actual doppler device is expensive and difficult to find.
If you don’t want to buy the device, you can also rent a fetal doppler for the duration of pregnancy that you require. Whereas purchasing a quality device would cost you several hundred dollars, you can rent one for a fraction of the cost.
Are the home Doppler heartbeat monitors any good?
Most of the low cost devices available online that call themselves Dopplers may not actually be Dopplers at all. If you expect that you will be able to hear your baby from about 6 to 8 weeks as well as you do during an ultrasound or when you visit the doctor for routine prenatal visits, you would be disappointed.
Many of the devices may not be able to pick up your baby’s heartbeat even by the 20th week gestation. These are labeled as prenatal heart listeners and so on and aren’t actually dopplers. Reviews of some of these products state that they pick up a lot of outside noises, but not the baby’s heartbeat and so could be quite disappointing.
Do you need a Doppler Heartbeat Monitor?
Real dopplers are quite expensive and you have to ask yourself if you really need this device. Consider the fact that if the device is faulty or if you’re not using it properly and you don’t hear baby’s heartbeat, you can get unnecessarily stressed.