Week 1 Material Flashcards
5 minimum criteria for a home birth?
- informed consent
- singleton cephalic fetus at term
- absence of preexisting serious medical or obstetrical conditions
- absence of c/i to vaginal birth
- good communication & mutual respect b/w home birth providers and hospital staff (if a transport is necessary)
purpose of an epidural?
block labor painns w/o causing respiratory distress in the fetus
natural endorphin release is good for who and why?
good for mom & baby.
good for mom b/c blocks her pain and produces euphoria to process of childbirth.
good for baby b/c makes baby calmer.
why might an epidural ‘bad’ for mom?
no endorphin release in mom
can suppress UC’s–> now need pitocin
what two things do you have to do constantly after mom receives an epidural?
now need constant fetal monitoring= limits maternal mobility
also have to give mom a catheter= increases risk for UTI
what else can getting an epidural cause (besides blocking pain)?
can suppresses UC’s which means will then need pitocin
what can an epidural cause in relation to baby?
malposition which can lead to a C-section
what does a pitocin drip do?
stimulates oxytocin release to increase uterine contractions
where does oxytocin come from in the body?
posterior pituitary gland
in what type of cycle is natural oxytocin released in? why then are pitocin induced contractions so much worse (pain wise)?
normally released in a pulsatile pattern
pitocin contractions are much more painful b/c they spike (b/c mom is on a drip as opposed to her body producing it)
does oxytocin cross the BBB? does pitocin?
oxytocin does
pitocin does not- leads to no bonding effect or influence on behavior and can also cause fetal distress which can lead to C-sections
what are the 3 phases of uterine development?
- ovular
- embryonic
- fetal
when does the ovular phase occur?
first 4 weeks after fertilization
what happens during the ovular phase?
rapid mitotic divisions–> blastula which implants 5-7 d post fertilization and becomes a blastocyst
what is the difference b/w a blastula and a blastocyst?
blastula: sphere of cells w/central cavity filled w/fluid (from the morula)
blastocyst: similar to blastula but with inner cell mass, has recognizable body pole & preplacental zones & organ precursors are relatively positioned
when is the embryonic phase?
5th-8th weeks of pregnancy
what happens during the embryonic phase?
organ differentiation
when is and what happens during the fetal phase?
9th week-term
differentiation, growth & maturation occur
when is fetal age calculated from?
from date of conception
when is gestational age calculated from?
LMP (assuming a 28 d cycle)
before what day do you get the “all or none” effect?
day 15 of gestation