Decoding Gravida and Para: Terms in Antenatal History Taking

Primigravida
A primigravida is a woman who is pregnant for the very first time.

Think of “primi-” as ‘first’ — this term highlights her first experience of carrying a pregnancy, regardless of the outcome.

Multigravida
A multigravida refers to a woman who has been pregnant two or more times.

The term “multi-” stands for ‘many’, indicating that she has conceived before, whether or not those pregnancies reached viability.

Nulligravida
A nulligravida is a woman who has never been pregnant in her lifetime.

Nulliparous
A nulliparous woman has never carried a pregnancy to the age of fetal viability.

In India, the age of fetal viability is considered ‘28 weeks’ (as in 2025), whereas in many developed countries, it is around ‘24 weeks’.
She may have been pregnant before, but none of those pregnancies resulted in a viable birth.

Multiparous
A multiparous woman has delivered two or more viable pregnancies, regardless of whether the babies were born alive or stillborn.

Each pregnancy that reaches viability counts as one “para,” even in cases of twins or triplets —
It’s the number of pregnancies, not the number of babies, that matters.

Grand Multipara
A grand multipara is a woman who has experienced five or more previous viable pregnancies.

Such women are at higher obstetric risk due to repeated pregnancies and require special attention during antenatal and intrapartum care.
The National Health Mission (NHM) Maternal Health Guidelines, India, identify grand multiparity as a high-risk condition.

Parturient
A parturient is a woman who is currently in labor — in other words; she is in the process of giving birth.

Puerperium
The puerperium (or postpartum period) refers to the “six weeks, or approximately 42 days, following childbirth”.

It’s a time of physical recovery and emotional adjustment, when the mother’s body gradually returns to its pre-pregnant state.
The Government of India’s Reproductive, Maternal, Newborn, Child and Adolescent Health (RMNCH+A) strategy emphasizes postnatal care during this period to prevent maternal morbidity and mortality.

Term	Meaning	Key Point
Primigravida	Pregnant for the first time	First pregnancy
Multigravida	Pregnant two or more times	Multiple pregnancies
Nulligravida	Never pregnant	No conception yet
Nulliparous	Never delivered a viable baby	No viable pregnancy
Multiparous	Two or more viable deliveries	Counts pregnancies, not babies
Grand Multipara	Five or more viable deliveries	High obstetric risk (NHM, India)
Parturient	In labor	Currently giving birth
Puerperium	6 weeks after delivery	Postnatal recovery phase (RMNCH+A guidelines)

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ANC Terms Explained

References

Dutta DC. Textbook of Obstetrics. 9th ed. New Delhi: Jaypee Brothers Medical Publishers; 2023.
Padubidri VG, Daftary SN. Shaw’s Textbook of Gynaecology. 18th ed. New Delhi: Elsevier; 2022.
Park K. Park’s Textbook of Preventive and Social Medicine. 28th ed. Jabalpur: Bhanot Publishers; 2025.
Babu SA. Clinical Obstetrics and Gynecology. 2nd ed. New Delhi: Wolters Kluwer India Pvt Ltd; 2025.
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