Your antenatal notes made simple

Being pregnant - especially if it's for the first time - can be a daunting experience, particularly when it comes to understanding your antenatal notes and the various terms and jargon included in them. Our simple guide takes you through the various stages of antenatal care and breaks down the jargon into basic English.

Your notes

You'll be given charge of your notes from your first official antenatal appointment (known as your 'booking' or 'booking in' visit). This will happen, ideally, before your 10th week of pregnancy, and is arranged by your GP once your pregnancy is confirmed. Here's some of the jargon you'll see on your notes and what it all means:

Fetal heart
FHH or H - fetal heart heard.
FHNH - fetal heart not heard. This isn't necessarily anything to worry about and could just mean your baby's lying awkwardly.
FMF - fetal movements have been felt, so your baby's definitely moving.

Weeks or gestation
The length of your pregnancy in weeks, from the first day of your last monthly period (LMP). Sometimes recorded as, for example, 10 weeks + 5, which means 10 weeks and 5 days.

Urinalysis (urine testing)
A urine sample will be tested at every antenatal visit for the following things:

- Glucose (sugar)
If glucose appears repeatedly, you'll be tested for pregnancy diabetes.

- Albumin (Alb)
Albumin (protein) may be a sign of pre-eclampsia (a serious pregnancy condition affecting mum and baby).

- Ketones
Chemicals produced when your fat-burning mechanisms aren't working properly, for one of several reasons. If albumin or ketones are detected in your urine, the quantity is recorded with plus signs: + = a trace, ++ = more than a trace and +++ means a significant amount. You may also see the letters Tr, which means a small trace has been found. A tick, 'nil' or NAD all mean the same - nothing abnormal detected.

Blood pressure
This appears as two numbers, such as 110/80. The top number is your systolic pressure (the pressure in the arteries when your heart contracts); the bottom number is your diastolic pressure (the pressure in the arteries when your heart relaxes between pumps). In pregnancy, a normal blood pressure range is between 95/60 and 135/85. If it rises to 140/90 or above, you may be seen by a specialist (obstetrician).

Height of fundus (FH)
The distance in centimetres between your pelvic bone and fundus (the top of your uterus). This gives a good indication of your baby?s growth.

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