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The visual analysis of cardiotocographic examinations is a very subjective process. The accurate detection and segmentation of the fetal heart rate (FHR) features and their correlation with the uterine contractions in time allow a better diagnostic and the possibility of anticipation of many problems related to fetal distress. This paper presents a computerized diagnostic aid system based on digital signal processing techniques to detect and segment changes in the FHR and the uterine tone signals automatically. After a pre-processing phase, the FHR baseline detection is calculated. An auxiliary signal called detection line is proposed to support the detection and segmentation processes. Then, the Hilbert transform is used with an adaptive threshold for identifying fiducial points on the fetal and maternal signals. For an antepartum (before labor) database, the positive predictivity value (PPV) is 96.80% for the FHR decelerations, and 96.18% for the FHR accelerations. For an intrapartum (during labor) database, the PPV found was 91.31% for the uterine contractions, 94.01% for the FHR decelerations, and 100% for the FHR accelerations. For the whole set of exams, PPV and SE were both 100% for the identification of FHR DIP II and prolonged decelerations. INDEX TERMS Cardiotocography (CTG), fetal heart rate (FHR), Hilbert transform, uterine contractions (UC).

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At the moment this book is being written, the world is facing the most significant challenge of modern history: the COVID-19 pandemic. The consequences of the outbreak cannot be precisely evaluated yet, since different countries are going through different strategies to cope with the virus pandemic and this is, obviously, generating completely different results. On the other hand, countries where effective strategies could reduce the infection rates a few months ago, are facing second and third waves of infection, indicating that this will be a long-term battle that will probably end not only when a vaccine will be successfully developed, but when the immunization will be effectively in place, with billions of people protected.The impacts are strongly significant in public health systems, with unprecedented numbers of mortality rates, exponential increasing rates of ICU occupation in short term and limited capacity of response in a large number of healthcare institutions. Additionally, when considering the perspective of the consequences of the pandemic in the global economy, the facts are also frightful and with long-term impacts, especially for developing countries and more specifically for small and medium enterprises. Societies and governments will need a long time and new strategies and actions to recover from the current outbreak minimizing the impact.The term COVID-19 is an acronym for "Coronavirus Disease 19" and is the name of the disease caused by the virus strain named SARS-CoV-2 (Severe Acute Respiratory Syndrome Coronavirus 2), which belongs to the class of the coronaviruses. It attacks the respiratory system, but besides a common infection in the respiratory tract, several other consequences may affect the patient directly and indirectly. The immune system, for example, trying to combat the virus, in several cases generates such a strong response that affects the patient's life. Consequences of the cardiovascular system and heart functioning are also being widely reported in the medical literature.When the virus was firstly reported in Wuhan, China and started its exponential spread, several strategies were adopted in parallel, led by general guidelines provided by the WHO (World Health Organization) and specific efforts developed by local

In recent years, the integration of Machine Learning (ML) techniques in the field of healthcare and public health has emerged as a powerful tool for improving decision-making processes [...]

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