Estimated date of confinement
Encyclopedia
The Estimated Date of Confinement (EDC) is a term describing the estimated delivery date for a pregnant
woman
. Normal pregnancies last between 37 and 42 weeks.
It is a calculated date (i.e., an estimation), determined by counting forward 280 days (40 weeks) from the first day of the woman's last menstrual period.
is a traditional term referring to the period of pregnancy whereby a woman would be confined to bed (in an effort to reduce risk of premature delivery). Except in threatened pregnancies (for example, in pre-eclampsia
), this is no longer a part of antenatal care.
Pregnancy
Pregnancy refers to the fertilization and development of one or more offspring, known as a fetus or embryo, in a woman's uterus. In a pregnancy, there can be multiple gestations, as in the case of twins or triplets...
woman
Woman
A woman , pl: women is a female human. The term woman is usually reserved for an adult, with the term girl being the usual term for a female child or adolescent...
. Normal pregnancies last between 37 and 42 weeks.
It is a calculated date (i.e., an estimation), determined by counting forward 280 days (40 weeks) from the first day of the woman's last menstrual period.
Origins of the Term
The term confinementConfinement
Confinement may refer to either* Civil confinement for psychiatric patients* Color confinement, the physical principle explaining the non-observation of color charged particles like free quarks* Solitary confinement, a strict form of imprisonment...
is a traditional term referring to the period of pregnancy whereby a woman would be confined to bed (in an effort to reduce risk of premature delivery). Except in threatened pregnancies (for example, in pre-eclampsia
Pre-eclampsia
Pre-eclampsia or preeclampsia is a medical condition in which hypertension arises in pregnancy in association with significant amounts of protein in the urine....
), this is no longer a part of antenatal care.