First magnetoencephalographic recordings of the brain activity of a human fetus

Abstract

Using a one-channel neuromagnetometer adjusted to a special site on the mother's abdomen, we succeeded in recording prenatally, for the for the time, human fetal brain activity in late pregnancy. It was possible to record both the fetal auditory-evoked neuromagnetic field and to detect fetal brain activity by analysis of the frequency spectrum. Such measurements may soon prove valuable for the noninvasive investigation of human brain function.