Pregnancy
is the development of one or more offspring, known as an embryo or
fetus, in a woman's uterus. It is the common name for gestation in
humans. A multiple pregnancy involves more than one embryo or fetus in a
single pregnancy, such as with twins. Childbirth usually
occurs about 38 weeks after conception. In women who have a menstrual
cycle length of four weeks, this is approximately 40 weeks
from the start of the last normal menstrual period (LNMP). Health
authorities recommend that women not artificially begin delivery with
labor induction or caesarean section before 39 weeks as this amount of
time is considered "full term" for the child to develop. Human pregnancy
is the most studied of all mammalian pregnancies. Conception can be
achieved through sexual intercourse or assisted reproductive technology.
An embryo is the developing offspring during the first 8 weeks
following conception, and subsequently the term fetus is used until
birth. In many societies' medical or legal definitions, human pregnancy
is somewhat arbitrarily divided into three trimester periods of three
months each, as a means to simplify reference to the different stages of
prenatal development. The first trimester carries the highest risk of
miscarriage (natural death of embryo or fetus). During the second
trimester, the development of the fetus can be more easily monitored and
diagnosed. The third trimester is marked by further growth of the fetus
and the development of fetal fat stores. The point of fetal viability,
or the point in time at which fetal life outside of the uterus is
possible, usually coincides with the late second or early third
trimesters; babies born at this early point in development are at high
risk for having medical conditions and dying. Visit: www.nursingguide.ph