Pre-eclampsia and Eclampsia
Introduction Pre-eclampsia and eclampsia are different stages of the same condition. Pre-eclampsia is often asymptomatic, but can be detected with a combination of hypertension and proteinuria (or thrombocytopenia - low…
Pregnancy – antenatal care
Introduction Much of the follow-up of pregnant women is carried out in the community, by midwifes at primary health care centres. The risk of death from pregnancy in the UK…
Pregnant Abdomen Exam
Introduction Introduce yourself to the patient and explain the procedure. Use a chaperone. Ask the patient to expose her abdomen. You need to expose her down to the hairline to…
Retroverted Uterus
Introduction The normal position of the uterus is anteverted. In this position, the uterus is concave on the side of the bladder, and bends round to sit just above and…
Routine Examination of the Newborn (Neonate Exam)
Introduction Strictly speaking, a neonate is any baby <4 weeks old. Then up to 1 year old, the child is an ‘infant’. Usually, within minutes after birth, a midwife or…
Stages of Labour & Normal Delivery
What is a ‘normal delivery’? Normal time of delivery is between 38 and 41 weeks since the LMP (which is between 36 and 39 weeks gestation) Approx 70% of all…
Sterilisation
Introduction Can be controversial in some cultures Should only be undertaken in stable relationships where the couple is certain they do not want any more children Epidemiology Rates falling in…
Subfertility
Introduction Subfertility (also described as “infertility”) is diagnosed if a couple fails to conceive in one year of regular, unprotected sexual intercourse. It is estimated that one in seven couples…
Termination of Pregnancy
Termination of Pregnancy (TOP) 185,000 TOPs are carried out per annum in England and Wales, with 12,500 a year in Scotland. The highest rate of termination of pregnancy is among…
The Menstrual Cycle. This file is taken from wikimedia commons and is licensed under the Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0 Unported license.
The Menstrual Cycle
Introduction The menstrual cycle is on average, 28 days long. It can be between 20-45 days. It varies from person to person, and month to month. A few quick facts:…