Category Archives: Pregnancy

Althought your pregnancy won’t be considered high risk just because you are over 35, your age does mean that you might be more likely to have or to develop a problem that results in extra monitoring, tests or treatment. Some … Continue reading →

Most women experience some discomforts during pregnancy, and often these are worse in the later stages. There is nearly always something you can do or take to ease these problems. However, it is important to remember that certain commonly used … Continue reading →

Data gathered on ovulation shows that it most often occurs between 8 and 19 days after the onset of menses, the exact day being influenced by the length of the individual menstrual interval. Whether you have a short menstrual interval … Continue reading →

The midportion of the fallopian tube is the rendezvous point for egg and sperm. Explanations of how spermatozoa ascend from the vagina into the uterus, and from the uterus to the meeting place in the tube, have shifted as knowledge … Continue reading →

The complex, seemingly magical process of fashioning a baby is by now quite well understood. And this process is a far cry from the primordial beginnings of life on this planet. The earliest life was probably a single celled organism … Continue reading →

Before fertilization can be accomplished, the sperm must undergo the process of capacitation – the process by which sperm become transformed and thus able to enter the egg cell. Freshly ejaculated spermatozoa are incapable of causing fertilization. Capacitation is accomplished … Continue reading →

If you use a barrier method of contraception, including the diaphragm, the male or female condom, the cervical cap, or contraceptive creams, foams, or film, you can safely become pregnant anytime you stop using it. This is true for an … Continue reading →

Invasive techniques for fetal assessment are reserved for pregnancies in which there is a reason to suspect an abnormality. This is because any “invasion” of the uterine cavity carries a risk to the pregnancy or the fetus.Invasive techniques allow direct … Continue reading →

Fertilized ova are able to implant elsewhere in the reproductive tract. These are ectopic pregnancies. They almost all miscarry early but may cause severe internal bleeding. Rarely, an ectopic pregnancy may carry to the age of viability or even to … Continue reading →

Not all pregnancies can be planned. Both human and technological errors occur with all methods of family planning. Planning, however, has definite benefits; healthy pregnancies are most likely to occur in healthy women. Effective methods of contraception should be used … Continue reading →