Fifteen years of experience with antepartum fetal testing.

The introduction of antepartum fetal heart rate testing occurred in the very early 1970s. This article describes the evolution of testing within the Los Angeles County/University of Southern California Medical Center and encompasses a 15-year time period between 1971 and 1985. During this time approximately 200,000 patients were delivered of their infants. Fetal surveillance increased from <1% to current levels of 16% of patients. The antepartum fetal death rate was evaluated as a measure of evaluating the usefulness of antepartum testing. The fetal death rate after antepartum testing in selected high-risk patients was significantly less than that found in those patients not tested. The questions that might be raised regarding broader application of this technique and potential benefits are stated.