New heart monitoring system to 'prevent cerebral palsy'

Brisbane's Mater Mothers' Hospital says its new system to monitor the heartbeats of unborn babies can help prevent conditions like cerebral palsy.

Hospital director of pre-natal medicine Don Cave says the scheme ensures that babies are continually monitored in the Mater's nearly 200 rooms and birthing suites.

He says if a fetal heart rate alters, hospital staff are automatically alerted by an in-built alarm.

"It's actually about lowering the risk for the mother and the baby in labour," he said.

"It ought to enable us to have better birth outcomes. It ought to enable us to flag events earlier than had previously been the case, so that you go some way towards preventing things like cerebral palsy."