Preconception Counseling

Abstract

Preconception counseling is a way to discuss optimizing reproductive age women's health and chronic medical issues to facilitate the healthiest pregnancy possible. Preconception counseling is an important piece of care for reproductive aged women especially as nearly 50 percent of pregnancies in the U.S. are unplanned and important fetal development has already taken place prior to the initial obstetrics visit. Many opportunities are missed to provide this counseling; only approximately one-third of women receive it. Visits to primary care are the ideal time for this to occur. In this paper, topics to discuss will be presented along with some guides to optimizing chronic medical problems to improve pregnancy outcomes.