Antenatal care is the routine and scheduled medical checkup a pregnant women should have during here pregnancy. This should be recorded and observed by the doctor for better advice.
A doctor or a midwife should take details of the woman's medical history and examination and also any financial and social aspects that may have a bearing on the pregnancy. Doctor should behave as a family member to ask relevant history to avert the danger of any problem both for mother and child.
At the first visit there should be the assessment of risk factors. Dating the pregnancy is the part of first visit. Doctor should ask any history of birth defects or any inherited problems. So that it could be managed before and after birth.
In the first antenatal visit doctor or the midwife should ask about the history of any medication. Smoking, alcohol, and drugs like narcotic intake should be asked to consider any birth defect. Doctor should advice the women to avoid self-medicate. Vitamin A in a dose of 2500 I.U. daily that is equal to 2 capsules can cause birth defects. So it should be completely abstained before planning the pregnancy.
In the antenatal clinic, on her first visit, women should be advised for well nourished diet having carbohydrates and proteins. Supplements should be added to her diet on medical bases. A daily does of 0.5 mg of folic acid, 15mg of iron, 1200mg of calcium and atleast 5 liters of fluids should be prescribed to avoid fetal defects. Women on caloric restriction diet should defer to post-natal time otherwise it will reduce fetal growth.
Antenatal visits are recommended monthly uptil 28 weeks of pregnancy, then fortnightly uptil 36 weeks and then weekly till delivery. In each visit there should be careful monitoring of both maternal and fetal well-being.
A record card should be maintained in each antenatal clinic. There should be record of weight gain, blood pressure, Urinalysis to watch for protein, glucose, and for any infection. Fetal movements, fetal lie, presentation, and engagement, especially after 36 weeks should be monitored and recorded on the card. Uterine size in accordance with dates and ultrasound should be carefully monitored as oversize will indicate any diabetes and if size is small there is any hazard of small babies not well nourished.
A base line profile of the expecting mother should be established on her first visit to the antenatal clinic. Complete blood and urine test should be done. Hb level is very important to consider. An ultrasound is highly recommended in the first trimester. It will best to evaluate the time of delivery and also any fetal abnormality. It also helps to detect the position of the placenta. Later a second detailed ultrasound is recommended in the 27 week of pregnancy to detect any congenital abnormalities of the baby.
Antenatal clinic are very important in maintaining the health of both mother and child . So routine visit should be advised.
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