Chapter 3: Birth, Physical Development and Health Flashcards

Flashcards based on Chapter 3 lecture notes covering birth, physical development, and health.

What is the approximate duration of the first stage of labor for a woman having her first child?

About 6–12 hours.

What happens during the third stage of birth, also known as afterbirth?

The placenta, umbilical cord, and other membranes are detached and expelled.

What are the three basic kinds of drugs used during labor?

Analgesia, anesthesia, and oxytocin/Pitocin.

What is natural childbirth?

A method that aims to reduce the mother’s pain by decreasing her fear through education about childbirth and by teaching her and her partner to use breathing methods and relaxation techniques during delivery.

What is prepared childbirth (Lamaze method)?

Includes a special breathing technique to control pushing in the final stages of labor, as well as more detailed education about anatomy and physiology.

What is a Cesarean delivery?

The baby is removed from the mother’s uterus through an incision made in her abdomen, typically when the baby is having difficulty emerging through the birth canal.

What is a breech position during birth?

The baby’s buttocks are the first part to emerge from the vagina.

What is the Apgar Scale used for?

To assess the health of newborns at 1 and 5 minutes after birth, evaluating heart rate, respiratory effort, muscle tone, body color, and reflex irritability.

What does the Brazelton Neonatal Behavioural Assessment Scale (NBAS) assess?

The newborn’s neurological development, reflexes, and reactions to people and objects.

What defines a low birth weight infant?

An infant weighing less than 5½ pounds at birth.

What defines a preterm infant?

An infant born 3 weeks or more before the pregnancy has reached its full term (before the completion of 37 weeks of gestation).

What defines small for date infants?

Infants whose birth weight is below normal when considering the length of pregnancy.

What are kangaroo care and massage therapy used for?

Interventions used in the neonatal intensive care unit (NICU) to nurture low birth weight and preterm infants.

What is kangaroo care?

A way of holding a preterm infant so that there is skin-to-skin contact, 2–3 hours per day, over an extended time in early infancy.

What is the postpartum period?

The period after childbirth or delivery that lasts for about 6 weeks, or until the mother’s body has completed its adjustment and has returned to a nearly prepregnant state.

What are postpartum blues?

Feelings of depression, anxiety, and upset experienced by about 70% of new mothers in the United States.

What is bonding?

The formation of a connection between the parent and the infant.

What is the cephalocaudal pattern of growth?

Growth from top to bottom.

What is the proximodistal pattern of growth?

Growth from the center of the body toward the extremities.

What is puberty?

A period of rapid physical maturation involving hormonal and bodily changes that occur primarily in early adolescence.

What is menarche?

A girl’s first menstruation.

What are androgens?

The main class of male sex hormones.

What are estrogens?

The main class of female sex hormones.

What is testosterone?

An androgen that is a key hormone in the development of puberty in boys.

What is estradiol?

A type of estrogen that dominates in female pubertal development.

What is the neuroconstructivist view?

Biological processes and environmental experiences influence the brain’s development, the brain has plasticity and is context-dependent, and development of the brain and cognitive development are closely linked.

What is the cerebral cortex?

Responsible for about 80 percent of the brain’s volume and is critical in perception, thinking, language, and other important functions.

What are neurotransmitters?

The chemical messengers in the brain.

What is myelination?

The process of encasing axons with a myelin sheath, begins prenatally and continues after birth.

What is lateralization?

Specialization of function in one hemisphere of the cerebral cortex.

What is Sudden infant death syndrome (SIDS)?

The leading cause of infant death in North America.

What is the Canadian Paediatric Society's recommendation for sleep per night for teenagers?

8 to 10 hours

What is the leading cause of death for children in Canada?

Unintentional injuries

What infant evaluation outcome is achieved through Breastfeeding?

Lowered likelihood of experiencing SIDS

What is marasmus?

Caused by a severe protein-calorie deficiency and results in a wasting away of body tissues in the infant’s first year.

What is Kwashiorkor?

Caused by severe protein deficiency, usually appears between 1 and 3 years of age.

What is Food Insecurity?

Not having enough food or limited access to nutritious and healthy food due to financial constraints, which is a mounting concern across Canada.

What activity guidelines are recommended for preschool children?

Engage in two hours of physical activity per day, divided into one hour of structured activity and one hour of unstructured free play.