New cut-off set for fetal scalp lactate with the fast and simple to use StatStrip® Lactate meter
A recent Swedish led large prospective observational study by Linda Iorizzo et al. was set to determine a new cut-off for fetal scalp lactate measurement based on neonatal outcomes with Nova Biomedical's StatStrip® Lactate - the only POC lactate meter designed for hospital use.
Earlier it has been shown that lactate level in umbilical cord blood correlates with lactate concentration in fetal brain and it is an established marker for severity of the cell damage and degree of hypoxic ischaemic encephalopathy. The previous internationally accepted intervention threshold cut-off for fetal scalp lactate result indicating fetal acidemia was set up to a meter no longer in production. Iorizzo et al. set up a prospective observational study to present a new fetal scalp lactate cut-off for StatStrip Lactate system. Between 2016-2020 seven maternity clinics in Sweden and one in Australia participated this study and clinically relevant cut-off for StatStrip Lactate was established from a large sample size of 799 deliveries. In the study outcome was determined by metabolic acidosis in cord blood, defined as pH <7.05 plus BDecf >10 mmol/l and/or lactate >10 mmol/l, taken after delivery within 25 minutes of the fetal scalp blood lactate sample.
Based on correlation between fetal scalp blood lactate and metabolic acidosis, the study conclusion is that suggested intervention threshold for fetal acidemia is scalp blood lactate concentration of 5.2 mmol/L. Study authors suggest that labor can continue if lower than cut-off level of fetal blood lactate is measured. When needed scalp lactate measurement should be repeated after 20 to 30 minutes or to gain information if lactate is increasing or decreasing. These study findings are valid exclusively for the StatStrip® Lactate systems.1
Aidian is the proud distributor of Nova Biomedical's StatStrip® hand held meters in the Nordics. Read more about the StatStrip Lactate meter here:
Reference
- Iorizzo L et al., Proposed cutoff for fetal scalp blood lactate in intrapartum fetal surveillance based on neonatal outcomes: a large prospective observational study. BJOG. 2022 Mar;129(4):636-646. Epub 2021 Oct 4. PMID: 34555249. https://doi.org/10.1111/1471-0528.16924