Dhanalakshmi is excited. She suspects that she is pregnant. She and her husband have fixed an appointment with her obstetrician. She has discussed obstetrician’s visits with her friends who have already delivered. She has apprehensions that she hopes her obstetrician

will allay.

The first visit

At your first visit, your obstetrician will first ask you some questions. She will find out any symptoms you have due to the pregnancy. She will also ask you about your family history. This will let her know if you are at any risk for developing complications during the pregnancy. If you have been pregnant before, she will ask you about the kind of delivery you had. She will then confirm the pregnancy. She will perform an examination to determine the size of your uterus which will tell her how pregnant you are.

Examination of the uterine size

In early pregnancy, the first visit usually involves assessment of the uterine size to determine if the pregnancy corresponds to the dates that you have given. Your obstetrician will do an internal examination and feel the size of the uterus. After the third month of pregnancy, the examination is usually of the abdomen only. This is because after the third month of pregnancy, the uterus is felt abdominally. The doctor will examine the size of the uterus and know whether the baby is growing well or not.