Title: Medical Care During Pregnancy | PregnancyAndChildren.com
Headings: Medical Care During Pregnancy
Medical Care During Pregnancy
Medical Care During Pregnancy
Your First Visit and Follow-up Appointments
Talking to Your Health Care Provider
Additional Information

Content: Medical Care During Pregnancy | PregnancyAndChildren.com
Medical Care During Pregnancy
Medical Care During Pregnancy
Every year almost 4 million American women give birth and approximately 33% of them will have some kind of pregnancy-related complication. If you do not get adequate prenatal care you increase the chance that a complication will not be found until it is too late to deal with it. Accordingly, you should start prenatal care as early as possible. If you are planning a pregnancy, prenatal care should begin even before you get pregnant and you should see your health care provider for a complete checkup. If you are already being treated for a chronic condition, you should talk to your doctor about how it could affect your pregnancy. This is also a good time to talk with your health care provider about other things such as drinking alcohol, consuming caffeine or smoking, and taking a prenatal vitamin that contains folic acid, calcium, and iron. Pregnant women are typically cared for by: obstetricians who are medical doctors who specialize in pregnancy and childbirth
obstetricians/gynecologists (OB/GYNs) are medical doctors who specialize in pregnancy, childbirth and women's health care
family practitioners who are medical doctors who provide a range of services for patients of all ages
certified midwives who may be a nurse or other professional who specializes in women's health care needs, including prenatal care, labor and delivery, and postpartum care for "normal" pregnancies
Your First Visit and Follow-up Appointments
Typically, the first examination should take place during the first 6-8 weeks of your pregnancy. During this first visit, you also can expect to provide a health history, have an exam, provide a urine sample and have a Pap smear for cervical cancer. If you are healthy and there are no complicating risk factors, you can expect to see your health care provider every 4 weeks until about the 28th week of pregnancy, then every 2 weeks until 36 weeks, and then once a week.