Periodic Reporting for period 1 - MEASURE (Models of the maternal and fetal cardiovascular systems coupling via uterus and placenta)
Période du rapport: 2023-09-01 au 2025-08-31
Pregnancy is a delicate and complex phase in a woman’s life, where the health of both mother and baby must be carefully monitored. Complications such as preeclampsia, growth restrictions, or congenital heart disease can affect up to 1 in 10 pregnancies, and they remain a leading cause of maternal and perinatal illness and death worldwide. Detecting these problems early is particularly challenging, since many of the tools currently used in clinics only identify complications when the condition has already progressed, reducing the chances of timely intervention.
The MEASURE project set out to address this challenge by exploring how the mother’s and fetus’s hearts and circulatory systems interact during pregnancy. These interactions, known as maternal–fetal coupling, reflect the continuous exchange and influences between mother and child. The main goal was to investigate whether subtle changes in these coupling mechanisms could provide early warning signs of pregnancy complications. To achieve this, the project developed novel methods to extract and analyze electrical signals from the abdomen of pregnant women and used them to build computational models of maternal–fetal interactions. The project aimed to generate new scientific knowledge while also laying the groundwork for future clinical and industrial applications.
The MEASURE project set out to address this challenge by exploring how the mother’s and fetus’s hearts and circulatory systems interact during pregnancy. These interactions, known as maternal–fetal coupling, reflect the continuous exchange and influences between mother and child. The main goal was to investigate whether subtle changes in these coupling mechanisms could provide early warning signs of pregnancy complications. To achieve this, the project developed novel methods to extract and analyze electrical signals from the abdomen of pregnant women and used them to build computational models of maternal–fetal interactions. The project aimed to generate new scientific knowledge while also laying the groundwork for future clinical and industrial applications.
From the start, major efforts were devoted to advancing the technology used to capture and process electrophysiological signals. The fellowship led to several key achievements:
• Better detection of the fetal heartbeat: New algorithms were developed to reliably extract the fetal ECG (electrocardiogram) from abdominal recordings, even when using textile electrodes designed to be comfortable, wearable, and completely non-invasive.
• Detailed characterization of the heartbeat: For the first time, techniques were designed for extracting single-cycle features from the fetal ECG, providing richer information about the development and the functioning of the baby’s.
• Monitoring contractions: Innovative algorithms were created to analyze uterine electrical signals and automatically detect contractions, offering a powerful tool for monitoring preterm birth risks.
• Understanding maternal–fetal interactions: Using advanced statistical models, the project demonstrated that maternal breathing plays an unexpectedly important role in shaping the cardiovascular coupling between mother and fetus.
• Early detection of anomalies: Most importantly, the project showed that differences in maternal–fetal coupling are already visible in the second trimester in fetuses affected by congenital heart disease. This finding suggests that coupling metrics could enable earlier and more accurate diagnosis of fetal pathologies, complementing conventional screening tools.
Although the collection of new multimodal datasets was limited, the project successfully used clinical datasets from partners, public resources, and pre-existing recordings from the host institution. This ensured that the objectives were achieved and, in some cases, exceeded expectations.
The results were widely disseminated through presentations at leading international conferences, multiple journal submissions, and outreach activities targeting both scientific and non-specialist audiences. Notably, a dedicated special session on maternal–fetal monitoring will be organized at the IEEE Biomedical and Health Informatics Conference (BHI) in 2025, further boosting the project’s visibility and impact.
• Better detection of the fetal heartbeat: New algorithms were developed to reliably extract the fetal ECG (electrocardiogram) from abdominal recordings, even when using textile electrodes designed to be comfortable, wearable, and completely non-invasive.
• Detailed characterization of the heartbeat: For the first time, techniques were designed for extracting single-cycle features from the fetal ECG, providing richer information about the development and the functioning of the baby’s.
• Monitoring contractions: Innovative algorithms were created to analyze uterine electrical signals and automatically detect contractions, offering a powerful tool for monitoring preterm birth risks.
• Understanding maternal–fetal interactions: Using advanced statistical models, the project demonstrated that maternal breathing plays an unexpectedly important role in shaping the cardiovascular coupling between mother and fetus.
• Early detection of anomalies: Most importantly, the project showed that differences in maternal–fetal coupling are already visible in the second trimester in fetuses affected by congenital heart disease. This finding suggests that coupling metrics could enable earlier and more accurate diagnosis of fetal pathologies, complementing conventional screening tools.
Although the collection of new multimodal datasets was limited, the project successfully used clinical datasets from partners, public resources, and pre-existing recordings from the host institution. This ensured that the objectives were achieved and, in some cases, exceeded expectations.
The results were widely disseminated through presentations at leading international conferences, multiple journal submissions, and outreach activities targeting both scientific and non-specialist audiences. Notably, a dedicated special session on maternal–fetal monitoring will be organized at the IEEE Biomedical and Health Informatics Conference (BHI) in 2025, further boosting the project’s visibility and impact.
The MEASURE project has pushed forward the frontiers of pregnancy monitoring in several ways:
• It provided the first evidence that maternal–fetal coupling can serve as an early marker of congenital heart disease.
• It introduced maternal respiration as a key mediator of maternal–fetal coupling, an aspect previously overlooked in the field.
• It developed novel methods to extract and analyze fetal ECG with greater precision, even from a single sensor lead, simplifying monitoring procedures and improving maternal comfort.
• It delivered computational tools and visualization platforms that can be further expanded into clinical or commercial applications.
The expected impact is considerable. If integrated into routine clinical practice, these innovations could allow earlier detection of complications, giving clinicians more time to act and improving outcomes for both mothers and babies. Such advances would reduce the burden of high-risk pregnancies on healthcare systems and contribute to healthier lives for future generations. Furthermore, the results provide a strong foundation for industrial innovation in non-invasive monitoring technologies, fostering collaboration between academia, hospitals, and medical device companies.
• It provided the first evidence that maternal–fetal coupling can serve as an early marker of congenital heart disease.
• It introduced maternal respiration as a key mediator of maternal–fetal coupling, an aspect previously overlooked in the field.
• It developed novel methods to extract and analyze fetal ECG with greater precision, even from a single sensor lead, simplifying monitoring procedures and improving maternal comfort.
• It delivered computational tools and visualization platforms that can be further expanded into clinical or commercial applications.
The expected impact is considerable. If integrated into routine clinical practice, these innovations could allow earlier detection of complications, giving clinicians more time to act and improving outcomes for both mothers and babies. Such advances would reduce the burden of high-risk pregnancies on healthcare systems and contribute to healthier lives for future generations. Furthermore, the results provide a strong foundation for industrial innovation in non-invasive monitoring technologies, fostering collaboration between academia, hospitals, and medical device companies.