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Health Books about pregnancy


What is pregnancy?

Pregnancy is the carrying of one or more embryos or fetuses by female mammals, including humans, inside their bodies. In a pregnancy there can be multiple gestations (for example, in the case of twins, or triplets). Human pregnancy is the most studied of all mammalian pregnancies.

Human pregnancy lasts approximately 40 weeks between the time of the last menstrual cycle and birth (38 weeks from fertilisation). The medical term for a pregnant woman is "genetalian," just as the medical term for the unborn human is an embryo (early weeks) and then "foetus" (until birth). A woman who is pregnant for the first time is known as a primigravida or gravida 1: a woman who has never been pregnant is known as a gravida 0; similarly, the terms para 0, para 1 and so on are used for the number of times a woman has given birth.

In many societies' medical and legal definitions, human pregnancy is arbitrarily divided into three trimester periods, as a means to simplify reference to the different stages of fetal development. The first trimester period carries the highest risk of miscarriage (natural death of embryo or fetus), while during the second trimester the development of the fetus can start to be monitored and diagnosed. The third trimester marks the beginning of viability, which means the fetus can survive if an early natural or induced birth occurs. Because of the possible viability of developed fetus, cultural and legal definitions of life often consider a fetus in the third trimester to be a distinct living person.

See also Pregnancy terms and definitions
(Varney

Varney's Midwifery, Fourth Edition

Helen Varney Burst

Jones and Bartlett Publishers, Inc., 2004-01-25

Price: $124.95

Keywords: Books for Parents, Books, Music More, Health, Mind Body, Maternity, Perinatal Women's Health, Medical, Medicine, Midwifery, Nursing, Personal Health, Pregnancy Childbirth, Specialty Stores, Women's Health, Women's Health, Obstetrics Gynecology

Reviews:

A must read
I have always found Varney to be useful and easy to read, especially in comparison to Speroff or Gabbe. I think that this book was never intended to be the definitive text on home birth. If a midwife's interest lies in homebirth, seek out books that cater to that option. I found the skills sections especially helpful. It isn't Varney's job to unite midwives, her primary job is to educate. You can not teach the spirit of midwife through a book, that's where mentoring comes into play. This is certainly a must have for all practicing midwives, regardless of educational background.
Technically accurate, boring read
I am impressed by Varney's vast knowledge of hospital procedures as they relate to midwifery care. However, I found this to be "textbook" as a very boring read. Her information did not really cover the practice outside the hospital setting as thoroughly as would be needed for someone praticing in that setting. Her information would be most appreciated by the CNM and the L&D nurse - a great resource for them.
This is a good reference book, but not the best for homebirt
This book is a good reference book, but not the best one for homebirth midwives. Myle's, and Anne' Frye's books I have found to be more applicable in my practice. To the above person that thinks that Circumsision should not be addresses, I could not disagree more. Circumsision is a subject that should be addressed prenatally, and Since midwives are supposed to provide basic Post-partum care to the mother and baby during the first six weeks It is essentual that midwives and parents are educated about the issue antapartum
Not for those looking for Home Birth information!
This book does no service to the Home Birth community. If you are looking for information on all facets of birth in a MEDICAL setting, then this book would be for you. Home birth facilitators would never recommend some of the practices in this book. (The Zanelli technique, for instance. Which is when you have a baby that's head has delivered but the shoulders are stuck, and it shows you how to push the baby back inside the womb.Or as already mentioned, Circumcision.) This book would be useful for those birth facilitators that intend to practice exclusively in a hospital setting.
This book is a must reference for every practicing midwife.
I have read the other posted reviews of this textbook and feel obliged to respond to those who negatively critiqued its application to out-of-hospital birth. Midwifery IS midwifery. The principles put forth in this third edition set the gold standard for safe and competent care of mothers and neonates ... regardless of the setting ... and also provide the parameters for well-woman care. It would behoove every midwife to become as knowledgeable as possible about full-scope midwifery practice and Varney's Midwifery provides an ideal resource.


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