Overview
- A multi‑centre study published on May 26, 2026 found the wearable patch, called UPatch, produced measurements that closely matched standard handheld ultrasound in tests at UC San Diego and Oxford.
- The soft, skin‑mounted device can record fetal anatomy and blood flow continuously for hours and uses automated tracking to keep signal quality as the fetus and umbilical cord move.
- During clinical testing investigators reported one case in which prolonged abnormal fetal signals from the patch prompted an early caesarean that the team says may have helped the baby.
- The research team plans to package the patch with compact electronics and a wireless option but says larger validation studies and regulatory review are needed before routine clinical use.
- Investigators say UPatch could broaden access to prenatal monitoring in low‑resource settings by reducing reliance on trained sonographers and by providing continuous baseline data that may reveal problems missed by intermittent exams.