Hopefully this section will give you some clue as to what all the abbreviations and jargon are on your medical notes… if you can’t find what you want then email us and we will add it!

AF ~artificially feeding
AFP~Alpha-feto-protein – a pregnancy screening test
ANC~ antenatal clinic
APH ~Antepartum haemorrhage – bleeding in pregnancy
ARM~ Artificial rupture of membranes
BF ~breast feeding
BO~ bowels opened
BP ~Blood pressure

BPM~ beats per minute
CVS ~chorionic villus sampling
CTG~ cardiotocograph – electronic heartbeat monitor
EDD~ Estimated date of delivery (Due date)
EDC~ Estimated date of confinement (Due date)
El ~elective – planned
Em ~emergency
FBC~ full blood count – a blood test taken to typically check iron levels among others
FHR ~fetal heart rate
FHHR ~fetal heart heard regular (normal heart rhythm)
FM ~fetal movements
FMF ~fetal movements felt
Hb ~haemoglobin – the iron carrying capacity of the blood
Hep B~ Hepatitis B – an infection which pregnant women are screened for
IEL ~in early labour
IUGR~ intra-uterine growth retardation – size is severely growth restricted for gestation (weeks pregnant)
LFT ~liver function tests – a blood test sometimes taken, to check the maternal liver is functioning normally
LSCS~ lower segment caesarean section – incision in the natural skin crease just above the pubic bone
Mec meconium~ – the first black, tarry bowel movement of newborns.
MSU ~mid- stream specimen of urine
NAD~ Nothing abnormal detected
ND~ normal delivery
NT~ Nuchal translucency
P~ pulse (usually refers to maternal pulse)
PKU~ phenylketonuria – or Guthrie – a metabolic disorder tested for in babies, from a blood sample
PP ~presenting part – usually head or bottom
PPH ~post partum haemorrhage – bleeding after delivery
PU~ pass urine or sometimes per urethra
PV~ per vagina – from or via vagina
SFD’s ~small for dates – a baby which is small in comparison to the average size for the number of weeks
SFHM~Symphysis fundal height measurement – distance in centimetres from the top of the uterus to the pubic bone
SRM ~spontaneous rupture of membranes (waters breaking) (srom)
SVD~ spontaneous vertex/vaginal delivery – normal delivery
T~ temperature
TENS~ transcutaneous electrical nerve stimulation – pain management system for labour
TOS~ trial of scar – term used for women opting for vaginal delivery after previous caesarean
TVS ~trans vaginal scan
USS~ ultrasound scan
VBAC~ vaginal birth after caesarean
VE ~vaginal examination

Common terms

Breech~bottom presenting over or in the pelvis
Cephalic ~ head down
Gestation ~number of weeks pregnant
Lie~ the direction in which the baby is lying – longitudinal, oblique or transverse
Longitudinal lie~ baby’s body is vertical in the uterus with either head or bottom presenting
Oblique lie~ baby’s body is lying in one of the two diagonals, left or right oblique
Palpation ~the midwife’s assessment of the exact position of the baby in the uterus
Presentation~ the part of the baby presenting over or in the pelvis – usually head or bottom.
Transverse~ baby’s body is lying horizontally in the uterus
Urinalysis ~A routine but important test of a sample of your urine
asynclitic presentation ~ Basically means the baby’s head is presenting itself at an angle instead of equal.
Synclitic ~ means the head is entering the pelvis (presenting) equally both sides.

The lie
The ‘lie’ refers to the position of the crown of your baby’s head within your pelvis:

O (occiput) – this refers to the back of your baby’s head, which could be facing:
R – right
L – left
A (anterior) – to the front
P (posterior) – to the back
L (lateral) or T (transverse) – to the side

Presentation
The ‘presentation’ refers to which way up your baby is:

C or Ceph (cephalic) or Vx (vertex) – head down
Br (breech) – feet or bottom first

PP (presenting Part) relation to Brim (of pelvis

5/5 – head ‘free’ and not in the pelvis but above it.
4/5 – just has the top of their head in the pelvis can bob in and out.
3/5 – head in a good position in the pelvis, normally stays like this until labour.
2/5 – most of the head in the pelvis.
1/5 – normally the female would be in labour by this stage as the head is only just palpable from above the pelvis.
0/5 – head totally in the pelvis, birth almost certainly going to happen soon, cervix would be fully dialated.