Glossary

Gamete

The male sperm or female egg.

Genes

Parts of the chromosomes that control the inheritance of hereditary characteristics e.g. hair and eye colour.

Gestational age

Fetal age of a newborn, calculated from the number of completed weeks since the first day of the mother´s last menstrual period to the date of birth.

Gestational diabetes

A glucose intolerance which occurs in pregnancy, usually noticed between the 24th and 28th weeks of pregnancy. In most cases the blood glucose level returns to normal after delivery. Although the symptoms of this form of diabetes are mild and non-serious for the mother, elevated blood glucose in the mother has been associated with an increased risk of fetal and newborn death. Risk factors for gestational diabetes include maternal age over 25 and a family history of diabetes.

Gestational weight

The weight of a newborn at gestational age.

GIFT

Gamete intra-fallopian transfer. A procedure in which eggs are retrieved from a woman, mixed with sperm and immediately replaced into one of the woman´s Fallopian tubes, so fertilisation occurs inside the body (in vivo).