| A | B |
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| amniocentesis | obstetric procedure in which a small amount of amniotic fluid is removed for laboratory analysis; usually performed between the 16th and the 20th weeks of gestation to aid in the diagnosis of fetal abnormalities. |
| ballottment | techinique of palpating an organ or floating structure by bouncing it gently and feeling it rebound, Ballottment of a fetus within a uterus is a probable objective sign of pregnancy. |
| chorionic villi | tiny vascular protrusions of the chorionic surface that project into the maternal blood sinuses of the uterus and help form the placenta. This occurs when conception occurs. |
| ectopic pregnancy | implantation of the fertilized ovum outside the uterine cavity in; for example the abdomen, fallopian tubes, or ovaries. |
| flagellation | whiplike movement. |
| gravida | a pregnant woman. |
| intrapartal | period that begins with the onset of labor and ends with the delivery of the placenta; also called perinatal. |
| mesoderm | embryonic middle layer of germ cells giving rise to all types of muscles, connective tissue, bone marrow, blood lymphoid tissue, and all epithelial tissue. |
| para | a combining form meaning "similar beside" . Also a combining form meaning form meaning a woman who has given birth to children in a number of pregnancies (e.g., nonpara, unipara, bipara). |
| postpartal | the final stage of the maternity cycle. |
| trimester | one of the three periods of approximately three months that pregnancy is divided. |
| whartons jelly | gelatinous tissue that remains when the embryonic body stalk blends with the yolk sac within the umbilical cord. |
| antepartal | first stage of the maternity cycle; also known as the prenatal or the antenatal period. |
| blastocyst | embryonic form that is a spheric mass of cells having a central fluid filled cavity. The outer layer forms the placenta and the inner layer forms the embryo. |
| ectoderm | outer layer of the embryonic tissue that gives rise to the nails, skin, and hair. |
| endoderm | innermost cell layer. From the endoderm arises the linings of cavities and passages of the body and coverage for the most internal organs of the body. |
| Goodell's Sign | softening of the uterine cervix ; a probable sign of pregnancy. |
| implantation | embedding of the fertilized ovum in the uterine mucosa. |
| lanugo | downy fine hair characterisitc of the fetus between 20 weeks gestation and birth; most notably over the shoulders, forehead, and cheeks, but found on nearly every all parts of the body except for the palms of the hands and the soles of the feet. |
| morula | development stage of the fertilized ovum in which there is a solid mass of cells resembling a mulberry. |
| perinatal | period during pregnancy that begins with the onset of labor and ends with delivery of the placenta; sometimes called intrapartal. |
| villi | short vascular processes or protrusions clustered over the entire mucous surface of the small intestine. |
| zygote | cell formed by the union of two reproductive cells; the fertilized ovum resulting from the union of a sperm and ovum from the time it is fertilized until as a blastoacyst it is implanted into the uterus. |
