Summary
Antenatal care
(ANC) comprises care in pregnancy for the pregnant woman and her foetus. The aim of ANC is to promote the best possible biological, emotional and social outcome of pregnancy for both. This chapter is a description of
routine and specialized antenatal care such as testing for chromosomal abnormalities of the foetus and foetal therapy that may be offered to every pregnant woman, aiming to promote health and the best possible pregnancy outcome, and to prevent gestational disease and adverse outcome. Care for specific groups of pregnant women, such as women with early pregnancy disorders, gestational disease or chronic maternal disease, is described elsewhere in this book in Chap.
19 and Chap.
20 whereas preconception and periconception care are described in Chap.
6.