Obstetrics is an important branch in medicine that
specializes in pregnancy and infant birth. Very often obstetrics is combined
with gynecology as a medical specialty. Obstetrics covers both prenatal and
postnatal care for women and their babies.
In obstetrics, the medial body and health status of the
mother are constantly tracked before and after the delivery. Before delivery,
regular physical tests are conducted to know the uterine size and the length
of pregnancy. With a Friedman's chart, the delivery date can be determined.
Various prenatal tests are conducted regularly. This will help in managing the
remaining weeks of the pregnancy, determining the outcome of the pregnancy,
planning for possible complications with the birth process, planning for
problems that may occur in the newborn, deciding whether to continue the
pregnancy, and finding conditions that may affect future pregnancies.
Technique like ultrasonography, amniocentesis, chorionic
villus sampling, fetal blood cells in maternal blood, maternal serum
alpha-fetoprotein, maternal serum beta-hcg, and maternal serum estriol are
used to carry out various prenatal testing. Among the various techniques,
ultrasonography is considered the safest type. In this technique, sound waves
are used to take the picture of the fetus. Though, most of the tests are
believed to be safe, there are certain risks involved. In postnatal care, all
the factors after the delivery are covered. This includes breast-feeding,
involution, and building of the psychological relationship between the mother
and the child.
Obstetricians are mainly concerned with the delivery of a
healthy baby, without damaging the health of the mother. Generally,
obstetricians render their services through hospitals or health clinics and
every hospital or health clinic has a special obstetrics department.
Infertility is an
advancing subspecialty of obstetrics. With the advance of medical technology,
new and innovative methods like artificial insemination and embryo
implantations are introduced. These methods will help women who cannot
conceive through traditional means.
