EMS Obstetric Emergencies - OB Terminology

In the prehospital setting, EMS providers may encounter these obstetric (OB) terms when assessing and caring for pregnant patients:

1. Gravida: Gravida refers to the number of times a woman has been pregnant, regardless of the outcome. It includes both pregnancies that resulted in live births and those that ended in miscarriages or abortions. The gravida number indicates the total number of pregnancies a woman has experienced.

2. Para: Para indicates the number of viable births a woman has had after 20 weeks of gestation. It includes pregnancies that resulted in live births, regardless of the number of infants (e.g., singletons, twins). Para does not include miscarriages or abortions.

3. Abortus: Abortus refers to pregnancies that ended in miscarriage or abortion before 20 weeks of gestation. It indicates the number of pregnancies that did not reach viability.

Let's consider an example:

During an emergency response, EMS providers encounter a pregnant patient. As part of their assessment, they gather information about the patient's obstetric history using the OB terms.

If the patient states that she has been pregnant four times, with three of those pregnancies resulting in live births and one ending in a miscarriage, the OB notation for this patient would be G4P3A1 (Gravida 4, Para 3, Abortus 1). 

This means that the patient has been pregnant four times in total, including the miscarriage, and has had three viable births after 20 weeks of gestation.

Understanding these terms can help EMS providers gather important information about a patient's obstetric history, enabling them to provide appropriate care and consider potential complications during pregnancy-related emergencies.