MCN NCM 07 RLE
LESSON 2: WEEK 1 (GESTATION)
 GESTATION
o Period of time between conception
and birth. During this time, baby
grows and develops inside the
mother’s womb
 GESTATIONAL AGE
o Is the common term used during
pregnancy to describe how far
along the pregnancy is. It is
measured in weeks, from the first
day of the woman’s last menstrual
cycle to the current date
PURPOSES
Determining the age of gestation has several
purposes such as:
o Determining the events of prenatal
development, which usually occur at
specific gestational ages. Hence, the
gestational timing of a fetal toxin exposure,
fetal drug exposure or vertically
transmitted infection can be used to
predict the potential consequences to the  LAST MENSTRUAL PERIOD
fetus o Was defined as the date of the first
o To estimate the date of delivery day of the last menstruation
o To estimate fetal viability o To solve AOG:
o Used in birth classifications such as
preterm, term, post term # of days from LMP
o Used postnataly to estimate various risk 7
(evaluate baby’s health at birth)  SYMPHYSIO-FUNDAL HEIGHT
MEASUREMENT
o Measure of the size of the uterus
BASED ON GESTATIONAL AGE, NEONATES used to assess fetal growth and
ARE CLASSIFIED AS: development during pregnancy. It is
Premature <34 wks measured from the top of the
Late pre-term 34 to <37 wks mother’s uterus to the top of the
Early term 37 0/7 to 38 6/7wk mother’s pubic symphysis
Full term 39 0/7 to 40 6/7wk o Fundal height, when expressed in
Late term 41 0/7 to 41 6/7wk cm, roughly corresponds to
Post term 42 0/7 & beyond gestational age in weeks between
Post mature >42 wks 16 to 36 weeks for a vertex fetus.
When a tape measure is
unavailable, finger widths are used
HOW TO CALCULATE AGE OF GESTATION to estimate centimeter (week)
distances from a corresponding
 LMP anatomical landmark.
 Sympysio-fundal height measurement o However, landmark distances from
 Ballard score he pubic symphysis are highly
 Ultrasound variable depending on body type
 o Recording the actual fundal height  BALLARD SCORE
measurement from the palpable top o Based on the neonate’s physical
of the uterus to the superior edge of and neuromuscular maturity and
the pubic symphysis may begin at can be used up to 4 days after birth
around 20 weeks gestation (in practice, the ballard score is
usually used in the first 24 hours)
Gestational age Fundal height
o Accurate only within plus or minus 2
landmark
weeks, it should be used to assign
12-14 wks Symphysis pubis
gestational age only when there is
20-22 wks Umbilicus
no reliable obstetrical information
36-40 wks Xiphoid process of about the estimated date of
sternum confinement or there is a major
discrepancy between the
obstetrically defined gestational age
and the findings on physical
examination.

 ULTRASOUND
 o Is an imaging test that uses sound ultrasonography around 20 to 24
waves to create a picture of how a weeks of pregnancy.
baby is developing in the womb
o Also used to check the female
pelvic organs during pregnancy ESTIMATED DATE OF CONFINEMENT
o Ultrasound measurement of the
 Due date or estimated calendar date when
embryo or fetus in the first trimester
a baby will be born
(up to including 13 6/7 weeks of
gestation) is the most sccurate How to compute for EDC:
method to establish or confirm
 NAEGELE’S RULE:
gestational age
o Involves a simple calculation
To have the procedure:
APRIL-DEC
o Ask the client to lie on their back on
an exam table Month (-3), Day (+7), Year(+1)
o The person performing the test will
JAN-MARCH
spread a clear, water-based gel on
the belly and pelvis area. A
Month (+9), Day (+7)
handheld probe will then be moved
over the area. The gel helps the
probe transmit soundwaves. How to solve for AOG:
o These waves bounce off the body
structures, including the developing o Solve for the date of her EDC
baby, to create a picture on the o Subtract the number of the day of her EDC
ultrasound machine to the number of days of the month of her
o In some cases, a pregnancy EDC
ultrasound may be done by placing o Start the addition of the subtracted day to
the probe into the vagina. This is the months leading to her prenatal visit or
more likely in early pregnancy. date of admission
Many women will have the length of o Divide the sum of the months to 7
their cervix measured by vaginal