Health Library

The Health Library is a collection of health and wellness resources created for learning and accessibility. Select a topic below for related health information or search for a topic in the search bar for more information on other medical conditions.

Labor and Delivery

  • Fetal heart monitoring is a way to check the heart rate of your baby (fetus) during labor. The heart rate is a good way to find out if your baby is doing well. It can show if there is a problem. Monitoring may be done all the time during labor...

  • Learn the signs of labor so you'll know what to do when you're ready to have your baby.

  • When it's time to give birth, you have a choice of where to deliver your baby. Do you want to have your baby in a hospital? Is a birthing center more your style? Or would you prefer to have your baby at home? Do you plan to use a midwife? What will...

  • Laboring in water Some hospitals and birthing centers offer tubs or whirlpools for labor. If yours does, talk to your doctor or midwife about laboring in water. The warm water supports your body. It also helps you to relax. For many women, laboring in water has been proved to: Reduce labor pain. Reduce the use of or...

  • Is this topic for you? This topic provides basic information about normal labor and delivery. If you need information on pregnancy, other types of childbirth, or the first 6 weeks after childbirth (postpartum), see: Pregnancy Cesarean Section Vaginal Birth After...

  • Name: ___________________________________. Partner's name: _____________________________. Doctor or midwife's name: __________________________. Today's date: _____________________. This birth plan is a guide for my labor and delivery. Since...

  • Learn the signs of labor so you'll know what to do when you're ready to have your baby.

  • During the second and third trimesters of pregnancy, you may notice episodes when your belly tightens and becomes firm to the touch, then relaxes. These are episodes of tightening (contraction) of the uterine muscles called Braxton Hicks...

  • Regular contractions may mean that your uterine muscle is tightening (Braxton Hicks contractions) or that you are in labor. It may be hard to tell the difference between Braxton Hicks contractions and true labor. If there is any doubt, call your doctor. Braxton Hicks contractions During the second and third...

  • What is breech position? During most of pregnancy, there is enough room in the uterus for the baby (fetus) to change position. By 36 weeks of pregnancy, most babies turn into a head-down position. This is the normal and safest fetal position for birth. But in about 4 out of 100 births, the baby doesn't naturally...

  • By the end of a pregnancy, a fetus is typically positioned head-down (vertex), ready to pass head first through the birth canal. Sometimes a fetus is in a bottom-down, or breech, position as the due date approaches. Postural management is a way of attempting to turn a fetus from a breech to a vertex position by lying or...

  • External cephalic version, or version, is a procedure used to turn a fetus from a breech position or side-lying (transverse) position into a head-down (vertex) position before labor begins. When successful, version makes it possible for you to try a vaginal birth. Version is done most often before labor begins...

  • Effacement and dilatation allow a baby to be born through the birth canal. Effacement means that the cervix stretches and gets thinner. Dilatation means that the cervix opens. As labor nears, the cervix may start to thin or stretch (efface) and open...

  • Provides links to info on pregnancy, labor and delivery, and the postpartum period. Offers interactive tool to calculate your due date. Also links to interactive tool that shows how an embryo grows into a baby.

  • Pregnant women face lots of decisions about childbirth—what tests to have during pregnancy, where to give birth, how to manage pain. But sometimes those decisions are made for women without their opinions and guidance. You are more likely to have the pregnancy and childbirth experience that you want if you and your...

  • Learn about an epidural for labor: what it is, how it's done, and its safety and side effects.

  • For a while after childbirth, don't be surprised if you have little interest in sex. Physical recovery, exhaustion, and hormonal changes often affect sexuality after childbirth. Each woman's experience is different. Together, you and your partner can connect emotionally and physically by knowing ahead of time what...

  • Laboring in water Some hospitals and birthing centers offer tubs or whirlpools for labor. If yours does, talk to your doctor or midwife about laboring in water. The warm water supports your body. It also helps you to relax. For many women, laboring in water has been proved to: Reduce labor pain. Reduce the use of or...

  • In women, the perineum is the muscle and tissue between the anus and the vulva. During childbirth, the perineum stretches and sometimes tears. One way to help prevent tearing is to stretch and massage the perineum for a few weeks before your due date. Studies show that women who did regular perineal massage reported...

  • Spinal anesthesia (spinal block) is similar to epidural anesthesia, except the anesthetic is injected in a single dose into the fluid around the spinal cord. A spinal block may also be called a saddle block. It numbs the area that would come into contact with the saddle of a horse. Like an epidural catheter, a spinal...

  • Having support while you're in labor and delivering your baby can be a very positive experience. Your support person may be your partner, a loved one, or a friend. You may get support from hospital nurses, a midwife, or a birth coach, also known as...

  • Pregnant women face lots of decisions about childbirth—what tests to have during pregnancy, where to give birth, how to manage pain. But sometimes those decisions are made for women without their opinions and guidance. You are more likely to have the pregnancy and childbirth experience that you want if you and your...

  • You and your partner can learn a lot by taking a childbirth education class. This is especially true if it's your first pregnancy. A good time to start the class is in your sixth or seventh month. If a friend is going to be your labor support (labor...

  • When it's time to give birth, you have a choice of where to deliver your baby. Do you want to have your baby in a hospital? Is a birthing center more your style? Or would you prefer to have your baby at home? Do you plan to use a midwife? What will...

  • As your due date draws nearer, learn and practice controlled breathing techniques for pain management during childbirth. Concentrating on your breathing can help distract you from pain, relax both your muscles and your mind, and keep your oxygen...

  • A contraction stress test checks to see if your baby will stay healthy during contractions when you are in labor. This test includes external fetal heart monitoring. The test is done when you are 34 or more weeks pregnant. During a contraction, the blood and oxygen supply to your baby drops for a short time. This is...

  • Regular contractions may mean that your uterine muscle is tightening (Braxton Hicks contractions) or that you are in labor. It may be hard to tell the difference between Braxton Hicks contractions and true labor. If there is any doubt, call your doctor. Braxton Hicks contractions During the second and third...

  • At the end of the third trimester, the baby settles, or drops lower, into the mother's pelvis. This is known as dropping or lightening. Dropping is not a good predictor of when labor will begin. In first-time mothers, dropping usually occurs 2 to 4 weeks before delivery, but it can happen earlier. In women who have...

  • Learn about an epidural for labor: what it is, how it's done, and its safety and side effects.

  • To help control the pain and stress of labor, you may get pain medicines. The medicine can be injected into a vein or into the muscle. The most common pain medicines used are opioids. Examples include fentanyl, morphine, and nalbuphine. How opioids work for labor pain Opioids suppress how you perceive pain, and they...

  • Epidural anesthesia is an effective form of childbirth pain relief. Epidural anesthesia is the injection of a numbing medicine into the space around the spinal nerves in the lower back. It numbs the area above and below the point of injection and allows you to remain awake during the delivery. It can be used for either...

  • In women, the perineum is the muscle and tissue between the anus and the vulva. During childbirth, the perineum stretches and sometimes tears. One way to help prevent tearing is to stretch and massage the perineum for a few weeks before your due date. Studies show that women who did regular perineal massage reported...

  • Learn how vaginal tears can happen with any size baby. Tears can be treated, and they heal quickly.

  • An episiotomy (say "eh-pih-zee-AH-tuh-mee") is a cut the doctor or midwife makes in the perineum (say "pair-uh-NEE-um"), which is the area between the vagina and anus. It is done to help deliver the baby or to help prevent the muscles and skin from tearing. The cut is made just before the baby's head comes out of...

  • Find out the important differences between "practice contractions" and preterm labor.

  • Delivery before the 37th week is called a premature, or preterm, delivery. A premature delivery can cause problems for the infants if their organs are not fully developed. Infants delivered before 32 weeks have greater health risks than those who...

  • During pregnancy, a uterine infection causes inflammation, which can trigger preterm labor. This inflammation can also stimulate the amnion cells to produce fetal fibronectin, a protein. Fetal fibronectin testing is sometimes done when preterm labor symptoms are present. When the fetal fibronectin test is negative...

  • Expectant management is the close monitoring of a pregnancy for complications. It may involve some bed rest at home or in the hospital. Being on expectant management may mean you are advised to stop working, reduce your activity level, or possibly...

  • If you have symptoms of preterm labor, your doctor or nurse-midwife may examine you by feeling your cervix. If your contractions continue over a period of hours, you may be examined periodically to see whether your cervix is opening (dilating) or...

  • Cervical cerclage is the placement of stitches in the cervix to hold it closed. In select cases, this procedure is used to keep a weak cervix (incompetent cervix) from opening early. When a cervix opens early, it may cause preterm labor and...

  • Is this topic for you? This topic covers how preterm labor affects the pregnant woman. If you want to know how it affects the baby after he or she is born, see the topic Premature Infant. What is preterm labor? Preterm labor is labor that comes too early—between 20 and 37 weeks of pregnancy...

  • What is bed rest? Bed rest is limiting physical activity during your pregnancy. It can last a few weeks or even months. It may be at home or in the hospital. Your doctor may put you on partial bed rest or full bed rest. Partial bed rest usually means it's usually okay to sit, stand, or walk around for short...

  • Regular contractions may mean that your uterine muscle is tightening (Braxton Hicks contractions) or that you are in labor. It may be hard to tell the difference between Braxton Hicks contractions and true labor. If there is any doubt, call your doctor. Braxton Hicks contractions During the second and third...

  • During pregnancy, the cervix is a closed and sealed tunnel between the uterus and the vagina. Before or during labor and delivery, the cervix stretches and flattens ( effacement). At 24 weeks of pregnancy, the average cervix is about 35 mm (1.4 in.) long. A short cervix has a length of less than 25 mm (1 in.). Women...

  • When you are pregnant, a fluid-filled bag called the amniotic sac surrounds and protects the fetus. When a hole or tear forms in the sac, it's called a rupture of the membranes. Most women describe this by saying their "water broke." Your membranes can break by themselves. This is called a spontaneous rupture of the...

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