Glossary
Obstetrician-Gynecologist Terms & Vocabulary
15 essential obstetrician-gynecologist terms with plain-English definitions: the vocabulary you’ll hear in training and on day one.
Key obstetrician-gynecologist vocabulary
These 15 terms come up constantly in obstetrician-gynecologist training, on the job and in interviews. Knowing them helps you follow instructions, document accurately and sound prepared.
- Cesarean section
- Surgical delivery.
- Endometriosis
- Tissue growing outside the uterus.
- Fetal heart monitoring
- Tracking baby’s heart rate.
- Fibroids
- Noncancerous uterine growths.
- Gestational diabetes
- Diabetes during pregnancy.
- High-risk pregnancy
- A pregnancy with added risks.
- HPV
- A virus linked to cervical cancer.
- Laborist
- Hospital-based OB on shifts.
- Laparoscopy
- Minimally invasive surgery.
- Maternal-fetal medicine
- High-risk pregnancy specialty.
- Menopause
- End of menstrual periods.
- Pap test
- Cervical cancer screening.
- Postpartum hemorrhage
- Heavy bleeding after birth.
- Preeclampsia
- Dangerous high blood pressure in pregnancy.
- Prenatal care
- Care during pregnancy.
Practice these terms
Test yourself with the free Obstetrician-Gynecologist practice test: it includes vocabulary questions built from this list. For a complete course, see Obstetrician-Gynecologist training.
Browse terms from every career in our career glossary.