Term
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Definition
| A prenatal test to measure the amount of a fetal protein in the mother's blood. Abnormal amounts of the protein may indicate genetic problems in the fetus. |
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Term
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Definition
| extraction by centesis of amniotic fluid from a pregnant woman (after the 15th week of pregnancy) to aid in the diagnosis of fetal abnormalities) |
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Definition
| artificially breaking the bag of waters. |
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Definition
| An intervention to help labor that has begun naturally to progress more rapidly. Often, Pitocin (a synthetic form of the hormone oxytocin) is used to make contractions stronger or to rupture the mebranes. |
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Term
| baseline fetal heart rate |
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Definition
| fetal heart rate between contractions |
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Definition
| When the baby's bottom or feet, rather than the head, face the mother's cervix as labor nears. |
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Definition
| A test to check on how the baby is doing while inside the uterus. Using ultrasound, this test assesses fetal breathing, fetal movement, fetal tone, and amniotic fluid volume. |
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Term
| cephalopelvic disproportion |
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Definition
| When a baby's head is too large to pass through the mother's pelvis |
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Term
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Definition
| he process that prepares the cervix for labor, making the cervix soft and thin. Cervical ripening either occurs naturally or can be accomplished artificially using prostaglandins or misoprostol. |
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Term
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Definition
| is a temporary swelling left on an infant's head after a ventouse suction cap has been used to deliver him or her. It is not a sign of serious injury and may take as little as two hours or as long as two weeks to disappear. |
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Term
| chorionic villus sampling |
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Definition
| An early genetic diagnostic test, usually given between weeks 10 and 13 of pregnancy. A small amount of tissue from the cells that line the placenta (called the chorionic villi) are removed through the cervix or abdomen with a needle and screened for Down syndrome and other abnormalities. |
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Term
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Definition
| A test to check on how the baby is doing while inside the uterus. A CST tests how the baby responds to the stress of uterine contractions. The mother is hooked up to a fetal monitor and is given oxytocin via an IV, while the baby is monitored to see how it responds to contractions. |
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Term
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Definition
| A decrease in the fetal heart rate |
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Term
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Definition
| When labor does not progress, an abnormal or difficult childbirth or labor |
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Term
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Definition
| slowing of the fetal heart rate early in the uterine contraction phase, denoting compression of the fetal head. |
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Term
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Definition
| inflammation of the endometrium |
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Term
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Definition
| An incision made in the perineum to enlarge the vaginal opening just before the emergence of the baby's head |
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Term
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Definition
| heavy drinking of alcohol during pregnancy which can cause numerous physical and mental birth defects |
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Definition
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Term
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Definition
| fetal heart rate >160 BPM |
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Term
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Definition
| overabundance of amniotic fluid in the uterus |
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Term
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Definition
| Using artificial means (such as drugs like pitocin or prostaglandins or by rupturing of the membranes) to start labor. |
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Term
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Definition
| Transient fetal brachycardia exceeding 100 beats per minute which reaches its height more than 30 seconds after the peak of the uterine contracti |
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Term
| lecithin/sphingomyelin ration |
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Definition
| A ratio used to determine foetal pulmonary maturity, found by testing the amniotic fluid; when the lungs are mature, lecithin exceeds sphingomyelin by 2 to 1 |
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Term
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Definition
| variations in fetal heart rate over minutes |
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Term
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Definition
| An infection of a milk duct in the breast. Symptoms include swelling, tenderness, redness, and fever |
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Term
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Definition
| A way to check on how the baby is doing while inside the uterus. In a nonstress test, the expectant mother is hooked up to a fetal monitor and the response of the fetal heart rate to fetal movements is observed. If the heart rate doesn't respond as expected to fetal movement, the results are considered nonreassuring |
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Term
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Definition
| A condition in which the umbilical cord wraps around the fetus's neck in utero |
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Term
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Definition
| A condition in which there is too little amniotic fluid in the uterus. |
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Term
| percutaneous umbilical blood sampling |
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Definition
| A genetic test that screens blood from the fetus's umbilical cord for abnormalities while the baby is still in utero |
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Term
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Definition
| glycerophospholipid found in pulmonary surfactant |
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Term
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Definition
| minor phospholipid component of cell membranes |
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Term
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Definition
| labor that lasts 3 hours or less from start to finish |
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Term
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Definition
| illness arising during the first 10 days of the postpartum period, a temperature of 38°C (100.4°F) or more on any 2 days of the first 10, excluding the first 24 hours |
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Definition
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Definition
| any drug that suppresses preterm labor |
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