Montevideo units are a method of measuring uterine performance during labor. They were created in 1949 by two physicians, Roberto Caldeyro-Barcia and Hermogenes Alvarez, from Montevideo, Uruguay.
Units are calculated by internally (not externally) measuring uterine pressure above baseline tone and multiplying by the number of contractions in a 10 minute period.[1] Uterine pressure is generally measured through an intrauterine pressure catheter.
Montevideo units can be more simply calculated by summing the individual contraction intensities in a ten minute period, a process which should arrive at a result identical to the original method of calculation.[2]
Generally, above 200 MVUs is considered necessary for adequate labor during the active phase.
If, for instance:
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