Biology

Pregnancy and Childbirth

964 Questions

This hub covers essential biology questions on pregnancy, fetal development, and childbirth. Topics include the placenta, maternal physiology, and the stages of labor. These concepts are frequently tested in general science sections of various competitive examinations.

Placenta and fetal nutritionStages of laborMaternal immune systemPregnancy complications

Pregnancy and Childbirth Questions

Multiple choice

Thrombophilia is a condition where blood has an increased tendency to form clots. In which of the following conditions do blood clots in the placenta take place causing miscarriage or other problems like growth restriction of the foetus, pre-eclampsia or, rarely, foetal death?

  1. Antiphospholipid syndrome

  2. Hyperhomocysteinaemia

  3. Paroxysmal nocturnal haemoglobinuria

  4. Elevated factor VIII
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

In antiphospholipid syndrome, blood clots are formed in the placenta which may cause miscarriage or other problems like growth restriction of the foetus, pre-eclampsia or, rarely, foetal death.

Multiple choice

Pre-eclampsia is a disorder of pregnancy manifested by high blood pressure, high amount of protein in the urine and seizures. Which of the following kinds of seizures are experienced by a person with pre-eclampsia?

  1. Myoclonic type

  2. Tonic-clonic type

  3. Febrile type

  4. Atonic type
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
B Correct answer
Explanation

A person with pre-eclampsia experiences tonic-clonic type of seizures. They are characterised by unconsciousness, convulsions and muscle rigidity.

Multiple choice

Amniocentesis is a technique used for the detection of

  1. Metabolic disorders

  2. Communicable disease

  3. Genetic abnormalities

  4. AIDS

  5. Haemorrhage
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

Amniocentesis is a technique used for the detection of genetic abnormalities. It is a process in which amniotic fluid is sampled using a hollow needle inserted into the uterus to screen for abnormalities in the developing fetus.

Multiple choice

In mammals, the maternal changes in the kidney during pregnancy includes _____________.

  1. decrease in urine flow through the collecting system

  2. decrease in glomerular filtration rate

  3. decrease in creatinine clearance

  4. decrease in size

  5. decrease in water sodium absorption
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
A Correct answer
Explanation

Urine flows more slowly through the maternal renal collecting system due to dilatation of the ducts. This dilatation is the result of mechanical obstruction by the enlarging uterus along with the relaxing effects of progesterone on smooth muscle.

Multiple choice

Which of the following statements is/are false?

a. For attaining total reproductive health as a social goal, India has started programmes and action plans at national level. b. Amniocentesis is a foetal sex determination test based on the chromosomal pattern in the amniotic fluid surrounding the developing embryo. c. The principle of natural methods of contraception is to avoid the release of ovum from the ovaries.

  1. Only a

  2. Only a and b

  3. Only b

  4. Only b and c

  5. Only c
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
E Correct answer
Explanation

This is the correct option as this statement is false. The principle of natural methods of contraception is to avoid chances of sperms meeting the ovum.

Multiple choice

In humans, placenta is

  1. endotheliochorial

  2. endothelial

  3. epitheliochorial

  4. dichorionic

  5. haemochorial
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
E Correct answer
Explanation

Placenta is haemochorial in humans.

Multiple choice

____________ is refered as the womb of a woman.

  1. Ovaries

  2. Vulva

  3. Vagina

  4. Uterus
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The uterus or womb is a hollow, muscular organ in which a fertilized egg, called the zygote, becomes embedded and in which the egg is nourished and allowed to develop until birth. It lies in the pelvic cavity behind the bladder and in front of the bowel.

Multiple choice

Which of the following diseases in the newborn is not a manifestation of maternal IgG antibody crossing the placenta?

  1. Myaesthenia gravis

  2. Malar rash

  3. HIV infection

  4. Thyrotoxicosis

  5. Haemolytic disease of the newborn (rhesus)
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
C Correct answer
Explanation

HIV infection is due to transmission of the HIV virus, not the antibody. However, the presence of maternal anti-HIV IgG can lead to diagnostic difficulty. It is therefore necessary to confirm HIV infection in the newborn by the presence of viral DNA or RNA using a polymerase chain reaction (PCR) method.

Multiple choice

Which of the following statements is false regarding normal birth in humans?

  1. As the uterus contracts, blood flow through the uterine artery is interrupted.

  2. Fetal blood oxygen levels can be 4 – 6 kPa (30 – 45 mmHg) without causing brain damage.

  3. The fetal brain can use alternative fuels such as ketones, if the supply of glucose is interrupted.  

  4. The umbilical arterial pH is the same or higher than the venous pH.

  5. Most babies are cyanosed at birth.
Reveal answer Fill a bubble to check yourself
D Correct answer
Explanation

The umbilical artery caries used blood away from the fetus and so the pH can never be higher than in the vein.