Chapter 19 Terms

stillbirth

a dead fetus expelled from the body after the twentieth week of pregnancy

chorionic villi sampling (CVS)

a procedure in which a small piece of membrane is removed from the chorion, a layer of tissue that develops into the placenta

amniocentesis

a procedure in which a syringe is inserted through a pregnant female's abdominal wall into the amniotic fluid surrounding the developing fetus

umbilical cord

a ropelike structure that connects the embryo and the mother's placenta

placenta

a thick, blood-rich tissue that lines the walls of the uterus during pregnancy and nourishes the embryo

amniotic sac

a thin, fluid-filled membrane that surrounds and protects the developing embryo

fetus

developing embryo in the uterus

prenatal care

steps that a pregnant female can take to provide for her own health and for the health of her baby

implantation

the attachment of the zygote to the uterine wall

genes

the basic units of heredity

DNA

the chemical unit that makes up chromosomes

embryo

the developing child from the time of implantation until about the eighth week of development

labor

the final stage of pregnancy in which the uterus contracts and pushes the baby out of the mother's body

miscarriage

the spontaneous expulsion of a fetus that occurs before the twentieth week of a pregnancy

chromosomes

threadlike structures found within the nucleus of a cell that carry the codes for inherited traits