Glossary: Reproductive Health | Biology for Grade 12 PDF Download

Reproductive Health – Problems and Strategies

• Reproductive and Child Health Care (RCH) programmes: Creating awareness among people about various reproduction related aspects and providing facilities and support for building up a reproductively healthy society.
• Amniocentesis: A foetal sex determination test based on the chromosomal pattern in the amniotic fluid surrounding the developing embryo.

Population Explosion and Birth Control

• Periodic Abstinence: Periodic abstinence is one such method in which the couples avoid or abstain from coitus from day 10 to 17 of the menstrual cycle when ovulation could be expected.
• Coitus Interruptus: Withdrawal or coitus interruptus is another method in which the male partner withdraws his penis from the vagina just before ejaculation so as to avoid insemination.
• Lactational amenorrhea: Lactational amenorrhea (absence of menstruation) method is based on the fact that ovulation and therefore the cycle do not occur during the period of intense lactation following parturition. 
• Pills: Oral administration of small doses of either progestogens or progestogen–estrogen combinations is another contraceptive method used by the females. They are used in the form of tablets and hence are popularly called the pills.
• Sterilisation:  Surgical methods, also called sterilisation, are generally advised for the male/female partner as a terminal method to prevent any more pregnancies. Surgical intervention blocks gamete transport and thereby prevent conception.
• Vasectomy: Sterilisation procedure in the male is called vasectomy. A small part of the vas deferens is removed or tied up through a small incision on the scrotum.
• Tubectomy: Sterilisation procedure in the female is called Tubectomy. A small part of the fallopian tube is removed or tied up through a small incision in the abdomen or through vagina.

Sexually Transmitted Diseases

Infertility

• Assisted Reproductive Technologies: Where corrections are not possible, the couples could be assisted to have children through certain special techniques commonly known as assisted reproductive technologies.
• Test tube baby programme: Ova from the wife/donor (female) and sperms from the husband/donor (male) are collected and are induced to form zygote under simulated conditions in the laboratory.

Abbreviations

• MMR: Maternal Mortality Rate
• IMR: Infant Mortality Rate
• IUD: Intra Uterine Devices
• MTP: Medical termination of pregnancy
• STD: Sexually transmitted diseases
• VD: Venereal diseases
• RTI: Reproductive Tract Infections
• ART: Assisted Reproductive Technologies
• IVF: In vitro fertilisation
• ET: Embryo transfer
• ZIFT: Zygote intra fallopian transfer
• IUT:  Intra Uterine Transfer
• GIFT: Gamete intra fallopian transfer
• ICSI: Intra cytoplasmic sperm injection
• AI: Artificial Insemination
• IUI: Intra-uterine insemination