Monitoring fetal heart rates during delivery is a routine practice performed in all hospitals in order to ensure the infant’s health during the ordeal. A new method, called ‘STAN’, is part of a nationwide study that allows nurses and doctors to follow the infant’s oxygen levels as well. Lack of oxygen during birth can cause severe brain damage, and is one of the main causes of conditions like cerebral palsy.

“The STAN monitor interacts with the fetus exactly the same (as the traditional heart rate trackers), but it offers a different way of looking at the information,” explained Nikki Dekker, a specialist on the method’s trials.

The STAN is attached to the baby’s head after dilation, and presents readings on the fetus’s oxygen use throughout the labor.

Dr. Bill Grobman of the Northwestern Medical Faculty Foundation, one of the facilities participating in the monitor project, explained that the monitor significantly reduces the guessing games that often ensue when there is only a heart monitor present. With oxygen intake on the screen, doctors are able to identify dangers, as well as increase or reduce intervention, lowering the risk of brain damage and cerebral palsy.