Glossary
Hysterotomy: Opening the uterine cavity.Hysterectomy: Removing the uterus.
Placenta praevia: Placenta lying low in the uterus, sometimes covering the mouth of the uterus completely so as to prevent the baby’s passage into the birth canal.
Abruptio placentae or placental abruption: Separation of the placenta from its uterine bed, causing mild or at times life threatening bleeding in the mother, compromising the fetal well being as well.
Meconium: Sticky blackish stool that the baby passes during the newborn period.
Pulmonary embolus: This can be a life threatening complication-it is a clot that has travelled from the leg veins up into the heart and blocked the blood supply to the lungs.
Hemorrhage: Bleeding from any site-at times heavily.
Prolapse of umbilical cord: The umbilical cord drops down through the cervix into the vagina and may get entangled with the baby.
Bicornuate uterus: A deformity which results in a heart shaped uterus which is split in the middle and the two compartments are separated by a septum.
APGAR score: A scoring system used to assess the well-being of a newborn baby. It is performed after 1 minute and 5 minutes of childbirth.
