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National Collaborating Centre for Women's and Children's Health (UK). Antenatal Care: Routine Care for the Healthy Pregnant Woman. London: RCOG Press; 2008 Mar. (NICE Clinical Guidelines, No. 62.)

  • January 2019: Recommendation 1.8.8.1 on screening for German measles (rubella) has been withdrawn by NICE as this is no longer offered by the NHS. December 2018: Recommendations 1.3.9.1 -1.3.9.3 have been stood down and replaced with a link to up-to-date advice from the UK Chief Medical Officer. January 2017: A footnote was added to recommendation 1.6.2.2 linking to the NICE diagnostics guidance on high-throughput non-invasive prenatal testing for fetal RHD genotype (DG25). March 2016: Recommendations 1.9.1.1 -1.9.1.3 have been deleted as the guideline they were taken from has since been updated. For guidance on assessing risk of gestational diabetes, see the section on risk assessment in the NICE guideline on diabetes in pregnancy. December 2014: Recommendations 1.5.6.1 to 1.5.6.4 were replaced by recommendations in the NICE guideline on antenatal and postnatal mental health. November 2014: Recommendation 1.3.2.4 was updated to take into account NICE's guideline on vitamin D: increasing supplement use among at-risk groups. June 2010: The recommendations about smoking in pregnancy in section 1.3.10 of this guideline have been further developed in how to stop smoking in pregnancy and following childbirth NICE guideline PH26. We have removed the following recommendation from the antenatal care guideline, as well as the quick reference guide and information for the public: 1.3.10.7 Women who are unable to quit smoking during pregnancy should be encouraged to reduce smoking.

January 2019: Recommendation 1.8.8.1 on screening for German measles (rubella) has been withdrawn by NICE as this is no longer offered by the NHS. December 2018: Recommendations 1.3.9.1 -1.3.9.3 have been stood down and replaced with a link to up-to-date advice from the UK Chief Medical Officer. January 2017: A footnote was added to recommendation 1.6.2.2 linking to the NICE diagnostics guidance on high-throughput non-invasive prenatal testing for fetal RHD genotype (DG25). March 2016: Recommendations 1.9.1.1 -1.9.1.3 have been deleted as the guideline they were taken from has since been updated. For guidance on assessing risk of gestational diabetes, see the section on risk assessment in the NICE guideline on diabetes in pregnancy. December 2014: Recommendations 1.5.6.1 to 1.5.6.4 were replaced by recommendations in the NICE guideline on antenatal and postnatal mental health. November 2014: Recommendation 1.3.2.4 was updated to take into account NICE's guideline on vitamin D: increasing supplement use among at-risk groups. June 2010: The recommendations about smoking in pregnancy in section 1.3.10 of this guideline have been further developed in how to stop smoking in pregnancy and following childbirth NICE guideline PH26. We have removed the following recommendation from the antenatal care guideline, as well as the quick reference guide and information for the public: 1.3.10.7 Women who are unable to quit smoking during pregnancy should be encouraged to reduce smoking.

Cover of Antenatal Care

Antenatal Care: Routine Care for the Healthy Pregnant Woman.

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Guideline Development Group membership and acknowledgements

Original (2003) version

Guideline Development Group

Peter BrocklehurstGroup Leader
Belinda AckermanMidwife
Brian CookGeneral Practitioner
Joanie DimaviciusConsumer
Helen EdwardsRadiographer
Gill GyteConsumer
Shahid HusainNeonatologist
Gwyneth LewisConfidential Enquiry into Maternal Deaths
Tim OvertonObstetrician
Gill RobertsRCOG Patient Information Specialist
Stephen RobsonObstetrician
Julia SandersMidwife
Anne WhiteGeneral Practitioner
Jane ThomasDirector NCC-WCH
Sue LeeResearch Fellow NCC-WCH
Jennifer GrayInformatics Specialist NCC-WCH
Natalie TerryAdministrative support NCC-WCH
Hannah Rose DouglasHealth Economist, London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine
Dimitra LambrelliHealth Economist London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine

Acknowledgments

Additional support was also received from:

  • David Asomani, Anna Burt, Heather Brown, Susan Davidson, Gregory Eliovson, Susan Murray and Alex McNeil at the National Collaborating Centre for Women’s and Children’s Health.
  • Stravros Petrou at the National Perinatal Epidemiology Unit and Kirsten Duckitt at the John Radcliffe Hospital, Oxford.
  • Members of the previous Antenatal Care Guideline Development Group: John Spencer (Chairman), J Bradley, Jean Chapple, R Cranna, Marion Hall, Marcia Kelson, Catherine McCormack, Ralph Settatree, Lindsay Smith, L Turner, Martin Whittle, Julie Wray.
  • The Patient Involvement Unit, whose glossary we have amended for use in this guideline.
  • The Three Centres Consensus Guidelines on Antenatal Care, Mercy Hospital for Women, Monash Medical Centre (Southern Health) and The Royal Women’s Hospital (Women’s & Children’s Health), Melbourne 2001, whose work we benefited from in the development of this guideline.

Stakeholder organisations

Action on Pre-Eclampsia (APEC)

Antenatal Results and Choices

Association for Continence Advice (ACA)

Association for Improvements in Maternity Services (AIMS)

Association of Radical Midwives

Association of the British Pharmaceuticals Industry(ABPI)

Aventis Pasteur MSD

Brighton Healthcare NHS Trust

British Association of Paediatric Surgeons

British Association of Perinatal Medicine

British Dietetic Association

British Maternal and Fetal Medicine Society

British Medical Association

British National Formulary

British Psychological Society

BUPA

Chartered Society of Physiotherapy

CIS’ters

Department of Health

Evidence based Midwifery Network

Faculty of Public Health Medicine

Gateshead Primary Care Trust

General Medical Council

Group B Strep Support

Health Development Agency

Hospital Infection Society

Isabel Medical Charity

Maternity Alliance

Mental Health Foundation

Monmouthshire Local Health Group

National Childbirth Trust

NHS Quality Improvement Scotland

Nottingham City Hospital

Obstetric Anaesthetists Association

Royal College of General Practitioners

Royal College of General Practitioners Wales

Royal College of Midwives

Royal College of Nursing

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health

Royal College of Pathologists

Royal College of Psychiatrists

Royal College of Radiologists

Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain

Royal Society of Medicine

Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN)

Sickle Cell Society

Society and College of Radiographers

STEPS

Survivors Trust

Twins and Multiple Births Association (TAMBA)

UK Coalition of People Living with HIV and AIDS

UK National Screening Committee

UK Pain Society

United Kingdom Association of Sonographers

Victim Support

Welsh Assembly Government (formerly National Assembly for Wales)

West Gloucestershire Primary Care Trust

Young Minds

Peer reviewers

Susan Bewley, Leanne Bricker, Howard Cuckle, Andrew Dawson, Viv Dickinson, Grace Edwards, Jason Gardosi, Duncan Irons, Deirdre Murphy, Tim Reynolds, Jilly Rosser, Lindsay Smith, John Spencer, Pat Tookey, Derek Tuffnell, Gavin Young.

2008 update

Guideline Development Group

GDG members

Rhona HughesGroup Leader
Jane AndersonUltrasound Radiographer
Chris BarryGeneral Practitioner
Marie BentonService User Representative
Jennifer ElliottService User Representative
Nina KhazaezadehConsultant Midwife and Supervisor of Midwives
Rachel KnowlesMedical Research Council Clinical Public Health Research Fellow
Tim OvertonConsultant Obstetrician
Katie YiannouzisHead of Midwifery

National Collaborating Centre for Women’s and Children’s Health (NCC-WCH) staff

Rupert FranklinWork-Programme Coordinator
Eva Gautam-AitkenWork-Programme Coordinator
Paul JacklinSenior Health Economist
Rajesh KhannaSenior Research Fellow
Rintaro MoriResearch Fellow
Francesco MosconeHealth Economist
Debbie PledgeSenior Information Scientist
Jeff RoundHealth Economist
Anuradha SekhriResearch Fellow
Roz UllmanSenior Research Fellow
Martin WhittleCo-Director in Women’s Health

External advisers

Guy RooneyGenitourinary Medicine Specialist
Anne LongtonHealth Visitor
Fiona FordDietician
Jane HawdonConsultant Neonataologist

Acknowledgments

Additional support was also received from:

  • Anna Bancsi, Angela Kraut, Moira Mugglestone and Martin Dougherty at the NCC-WCH
  • Allison Streetly, Programme Director for the NHS Sickle Cell and Thalassaemia Screening Programme.
  • Andrew Welsh, freelance guideline editor, whose editorial support was invaluable in the production of this guideline.
  • Group Dynamics, who provided the voting equipment for the Assessment Tool consensus meeting.

Stakeholder organisations

Academic Division of Midwifery, University of Nottingham

Action on Pre-Eclampsia

Addenbrooke’s NHS Trust

All Wales Birth Centre Group

Antenatal Screening Wales

Association for Psychoanalytic Psychotherapy in the NHS

Association for Spina Bifida & Hydrocephalus (ASBAH)

Association of Breastfeeding Mothers

Association of British Clinical Diabetologists

Association of Chartered Physiotherapists in Women’s Health

Association of Medical Microbiologists

Association of the British Pharmaceuticals Industry (ABPI)

Baby Lifeline

Barnsley Acute Trust

Barnsley PCT

BDF Newlife (Birth Defects Foundation)

Bedfont Scientific Ltd

Bedfordshire PCT

Berkshire Healthcare NHS Trust

Birmingham Women’s Healthcare Trust

Birth Trauma Association

Bradford & Airedale PCT

Bradford Teaching Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Brighton & Sussex University Hospitals Trust

Bristol Health Services Plan

British Association for Counselling and Psychotherapy

British Dietetic Association

British HIV Association (BHIVA)

British Hypertension Society

British Maternal and Fetal Medicine Society

British National Formulary (BNF)

British Psychological Society

Calderdale PCT

CASPE

CEMACH

Chartered Society of Physiotherapy

Chelsea & Westminster NHS Foundation Trust

Chronic Conditions Collaborating Centre

CIS’ters

CO-Awareness

Commission for Social Care Inspection

Community Practitioners and Health Visitors Association

Connecting for Health

Cotswold and Vale PCT

Croydon PCT

Cytyc UK Ltd

Department of Health, Social Security and Public Safety of Northern Ireland

Derbyshire Mental Health Services NHS Trust

Det Norske Veritas – NHSLA Schemes

Doula UK

Down’s Syndrome Association

Dudley Group of Hospitals NHS Trust

English National Forum of LSA Midwifery Officers

Epsom & St Helier University Hospitals NHS Trust

Evidence-based Midwifery Network

Faculty of Family Planning and Reproductive Health Care

Faculty of Public Health

Foundation for the Study of Infant Deaths

Gateshead PCT

Gloucestershire Acute Trust

Gloucestershire Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Group B Strep Support

Guy’s and St Thomas’ NHS Foundation Trust

Health Protection Agency

Healthcare Commission

Homerton University Hospital NHS Foundation Trust

Huntleigh Healthcare

King’s College Hospital NHS Trust

Liverpool PCT

Liverpool Women’s Hospital NHS Trust

Luton and Dunstable Hospital NHS Trust

Mast Diagnostics

Medicines and Healthcare products Regulatory Agency (MHRA)

Mid and West Regional MSLC

Milton Keynes PCT

Monica Healthcare Ltd

MRC Centre of Epidemiology for Child Health

National Childbirth Trust

National Chlamydia Screening Programme

National Patient Safety Agency

National Public Health Service – Wales

NHS Direct

NHS Health and Social Care Information Centre

NHS Quality Improvement Scotland

NHS Sickle Cell and Thalassemia Screening Programme

North Tees and Hartlepool NHS Trust

Northwest London Hospitals NHS Trust

Nutrition Society

Obstetric Anaesthetists Association

Partnerships for Children, Families, Women and Maternity

Pelvic Partnership

PERIGON (formerly the NHS Modernisation Agency)

Phoenix Partnership

PNI ORG UK

Positively Women

Post Natal Illness Organisation (PNI)

Primary Care Pharmacists’ Association

PRIMIS+

Princess Alexandra Hospital NHS Trust

Queen Mary’s Hospital NHS Trust (Sidcup)

Regional Maternity Survey Office

Regional Public Health Group – London

Royal College of General Practitioners

Royal College of Midwives

Royal College of Nursing

Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists

Royal College of Paediatrics and Child Health

Royal College of Pathologists

Royal College of Psychiatrists

Royal College of Radiologists

Royal Liverpool Children’s Trust

Royal Society of Medicine

Salford Royal Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

Salisbury NHS Foundation Trust

Sandwell and West Birmingham NHS Trust

Sanofi Pasteur MSD

Scottish Executive Health Department

Scottish Intercollegiate Guidelines Network (SIGN)

Sefton PCT

Sheffield South West PCT

Sheffield Teaching Hospitals NHS Trust

Sickle Cell & Thalassaemia Association of Counsellors

Sickle Cell Society

Society and College of Radiographers

Survivors Trust

TIPS Limited

UK Coalition of People Living with HIV & AIDS

UK Forum on Haemoglobin Disorders

UK National Screening Committee

UK Newborn Screening Programme Centre

UK Thalassaemia Society

UNICEF Baby Friendly Initiative

United Lincolnshire Hospitals NHS Trust

University College London Hospitals NHS Foundation Trust

University College London Hospitals NHS Trust

University Hospitals of Leicester

Victim Support

Welsh Assembly Government

Welsh Scientific Advisory Committee (WSAC)

West Middlesex University Hospital NHS Trust

Western Cheshire PCT

Wiltshire PCT

Wirral University Hospital Teaching NHS Trust

Women’s Health Research Group

Worcestershire Acute NHS Trust

Worthing and Southlands Hospital NHS Trust

Worthing Hospital

Wyre Forest PCT

York NHS Trust

Yorkshire and Humber Local Supervisory Authority

Copyright © 2008, National Collaborating Centre for Women’s and Children’s Health.

No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored or transmitted in any form or by any means, without the prior written permission of the publisher or, in the case of reprographic reproduction, in accordance with the terms of licences issued by the Copyright Licensing Agency in the UK [www.cla.co.uk]. Enquiries concerning reproduction outside the terms stated here should be sent to the publisher at the UK address printed on this page.

The use of registered names, trademarks, etc. in this publication does not imply, even in the absence of a specific statement, that such names are exempt from the relevant laws and regulations and therefore for general use.

Bookshelf ID: NBK51908

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