FRIDAY, June 5, 2026 (HealthDay News) -- A wearable ultrasound patch can provide continuous, real-time information about blood flow in the fetus and umbilical cord, according to a study published online May 26 in Nature Biotechnology.
Geonho Park, Ph.D., from the University of California, San Diego, and colleagues reported a wearable ultrasound patch (UPatch) for continuous and autonomous fetal monitoring.
The researchers found that anatomical structures and blood flow velocities can be acquired with UPatch, demonstrating good agreement with a handheld clinical ultrasound device in 62 pregnancies. To acquire continuous blood flow spectra during fetal and maternal movements without a sonographer, real-time image segmentation allows autonomous tracking of target vessels. Stratified perinatal conditions, including healthy, small and large for gestational age, gestational diabetes, preeclampsia, and gestational hypertension, were aligned with data from continuous monitoring of 52 pregnant women. Further development of technology could enable fully wireless operation and greater user mobility via integration with a miniaturized circuit.
"Right now, for these high-risk pregnant patients, it can be hard for physicians to get the information we want, right when we need it," Jane Chueh, M.D., from Stanford Medicine, said in a statement. "I think this device will be able to give us that information much more easily."
Several authors disclosed ties to the medical device and medical technology industries.
