Skip to main content
-
breech presentation
-
when the fetal buttocks (or legs) present into the pelvis first
-
cephalic presentation
-
when the fetal head presents into the pelvis first
-
cervical ripening
-
softening and opening of the cervix as it prepares for labor
-
clinical pelvimetry
-
assessment of the general shape and size of the patient’s pelvis
-
consanguinity
-
shared ancestry, such as when the parents are first cousins
-
estimated date of delivery (EDD)
-
date the pregnant patient is expected to give birth, plus or minus 2 weeks
-
fetal lie
-
relationship of the fetal spine to the pregnant patient’s spine
-
fetal presentation
-
part of the fetus entering the pregnant patient’s pelvis first
-
first trimester
-
0 to 13 weeks and 6 days of gestation
-
fundal height
-
measurement from the symphysis pubis to where the fundus (or top) of the uterus is palpated in a patient who is pregnant
-
gravidity
-
total number of times the patient has been pregnant (including the current pregnancy) regardless of the outcome or number of fetuses
-
integrated or sequential screenings
-
tests performed in the first and second trimesters of pregnancy to determine if there is an increased risk for abnormal chromosome and neural tube defects in the fetus
-
Leopold’s maneuvers
-
a specific method of palpating the pregnant patient’s abdomen to determine the fetal lie, fetal presentation, location of the fetal back, and, with deeper palpation, the fetal position; can also be used, along with measurement of the fundal height, to estimate the fetal weight
-
longitudinal lie
-
when the fetal spine lines up vertically with the pregnant patient’s spine
-
multiparous
-
pregnant person who has given birth one or more times after 20 weeks of gestation
-
Naegele’s Rule
-
three-step calculation based on a 28-day menstrual cycle, used to determine a pregnant patient’s due date: subtract 3 months from the first day of the last menstrual period (LMP); add 7 days to the LMP; and adjust the year as needed
-
oblique lie
-
when the fetal spine lies on the diagonal of the pregnant patient’s spine
-
parity
-
number of pregnancies where the patient has reached 20 weeks of gestation or more regardless of whether the pregnancy ended in a live birth or stillbirth
-
primiparous
-
person who is pregnant for the first time
-
quad marker screen
-
measures the maternal serum levels of four pregnancy markers, alpha fetoprotein, hCG, unconjugated estriol, and inhibin-A, to determine if there is an increased risk for abnormal chromosome and neural tube defects in the fetus and is performed at 15 to 20 weeks of pregnancy
-
second trimester
-
14 to 27 weeks and 6 days of gestation
-
shoulder presentation
-
when the fetus is in a transverse lie and the shoulder is presenting into the pelvis first
-
third trimester
-
week 28 until delivery (usually by 42 weeks’ gestation)
-
transverse lie
-
when the fetal spine lines up horizontally with the pregnant patient’s spine, like the plus (+) sign
-
trimester
-
14 weeks of pregnancy; the 280 days of gestation during pregnancy are divided into three periods, called trimesters