Observational studyBMJ open2018
Alterations in maternally perceived fetal movement and their association with late stillbirth: findings from the Midland and North of England stillbirth case-control study.
Observational study in BMJ open, 2018. The graph could read no effect estimate from its abstract, so it casts no vote on the map. It is linked to trial NCT02025530 (The Midlands and North of England Stillbirth Study - A Case-Control Study of Modifiable Factors in Late Stillbirth), which is not on this map. Cited by 22 papers, 4 of them syntheses that pooled it.
What it found
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The abstract states no effect estimate the extractor could read, or names no intervention and outcome on the map, so this paper lights no cell and moves no belief. It is still indexed, cited and linked below.
The trial behind it
Trials whose registry record cites this paper, or whose number appears in the abstract. A trial that started after this paper was published is citing it as background, not reporting it.
The Midlands and North of England Stillbirth Study - A Case-Control Study of Modifiable Factors in Late Stillbirth
Who cites it
22 citing papers in PubMed, 4 syntheses or guidelines pooled it, 75 citations in OpenAlex.
- The association between increased fetal movements in the third trimester and perinatal outcomes; a systematic review and meta-analysis.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2024Pooled it
- Pooled it
- A better understanding of the association between maternal perception of foetal movements and late stillbirth-findings from an individual participant data meta-analysis.BMC medicine · 2021Pooled it
- A Review on the Vagus Nerve and Autonomic Nervous System During Fetal Development: Searching for Critical Windows.Frontiers in neuroscience · 2021Pooled it
- Characteristics of Pregnancy Course in an Infant With Cerebral Palsy Showing Decreased Fetal Movement.Obstetrics and gynecology international · 2026Article
- From grief to resilience: a qualitative study of women's reactions and coping methods after perinatal loss in Türkiye.BMJ open · 2025Article
- Mothers working to prevent early stillbirth study (MiNESS 20-28): a case-control study protocol.BMJ open · 2024Article
- Maternal interventions to decrease stillbirths and neonatal mortality in Tanzania: evidence from the 2017-18 cross-sectional Tanzania verbal and social autopsy study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2023Article
- Explanatory models of stillbirth among bereaved parents in Afghanistan: Implications for stillbirth prevention.PLOS global public health · 2023Article
- Fetal growth restriction and stillbirth: Biomarkers for identifying at risk fetuses.Frontiers in physiology · 2022Review
- Article
- Evolving pattern of fetal movements throughout a healthy pregnancy.BMJ case reports · 2021Article
- Fetal movement counting is associated with the reduction of delayed maternal reaction after perceiving decreased fetal movements: a prospective study.Scientific reports · 2021Article
- An exploration of migrant women's perceptions of public health messages to reduce stillbirth in the UK: a qualitative study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2021Article
- Classification of intrauterine growth restriction at 34-38 weeks gestation with machine learning models.Informatics in medicine unlocked · 2021Article
- Fetal Movement Counting Using Optical Fibre Sensors.Sensors (Basel, Switzerland) · 2020Article
- Reduced Fetal Movements and Perinatal Mortality.Materia socio-medica · 2020Review
- Standard care informed by the result of a placental growth factor blood test versus standard care alone in women with reduced fetal movement at or after 36Pilot and feasibility studies · 2020Article
- Experience of parents who have suffered a perinatal death in two Spanish hospitals: a qualitative study.BMC pregnancy and childbirth · 2019Article
- Association between maternally perceived quality and pattern of fetal movements and late stillbirth.Scientific reports · 2019Article
Corrections and comments
PubMed lists nothing against this paper. Absence here is not a guarantee, only a check that was made.
Authors and funding
11 authors at 5 institutions in 2 countries.
Funding
Abstract
objectiveTo report perception of fetal movements in women who experienced a stillbirth compared with controls at a similar gestation with a live birth.
designCase-control study.
setting41 maternity units in the UK.
participantsCases were women who had a late stillbirth ≥28 weeks gestation (n=291) and controls were women with an ongoing pregnancy at the time of the interview (n=733). Controls were frequency matched to cases by obstetric unit and gestational age.
methodsData were collected using an interviewer-administered questionnaire which included questions on maternal perception of fetal movement (frequency, strength, increased and decreased movements and hiccups) in the 2 weeks before the interview/stillbirth. Five fetal movement patterns were identified incorporating the changes in strength and frequency in the last 2 weeks by combining groups of similar pattern and risk. Multivariable analysis adjusted for known confounders. PRIMARY OUTCOME MEASURE: Association of maternally perceived fetal movements in relation to late stillbirth.
resultsIn multivariable analyses, women who reported increased strength of movements in the last 2 weeks had decreased risk of late stillbirth compared with those whose movements were unchanged (adjusted OR (aOR) 0.18, 95% CI 0.13 to 0.26). Women with decreased frequency (without increase in strength) of fetal movements were at increased risk (aOR 4.51, 95% CI 2.38 to 8.55). Daily perception of fetal hiccups was protective (aOR 0.31, 95% CI 0.17 to 0.56).
conclusionsIncreased strength of fetal movements and fetal hiccups is associated with decreased risk of stillbirth. Alterations in frequency of fetal movements are important in identifying pregnancies at increased risk of stillbirth, with the greatest risk in women noting a reduction in fetal activity. Clinical guidance should be updated to reflect that increase in strength and frequency of fetal movements is associated with the lowest risk of stillbirth, and that decreased fetal movements are associated with stillbirth. TRIAL REGISTRATION NUMBER: NCT02025530.
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Registered trials
Read under generation 80e0d062 · epoch 390. Bibliography from PubMed, PubMed Central and OpenAlex; grants from NIH RePORTER; trial links from ClinicalTrials.gov; estimates, votes and beliefs from the OpenQuestion graph.