Uterous

The uterus has three major functions: to prepare a bed for a fertilized ovum, to nourish the developing embryo during pregnancy, and to expel the fetus. Shaped like an upside-down pear, and tilted forwards, it lies within the pelvis and is held in place, along with its two extensions, the Fallopian tubes, by ligaments and folds of the peritoneum. The cervix forms the lower third, connected by a narrow isthmus to the main muscular body of the uterus. The non-pregnant uterus weighs 45–60 g and is 7–8 cm long but its weight increases more than ten-fold by the end of pregnancy.

Fetal death

Fetal death refers to the spontaneous intrauterine death of a fetus at any time during pregnancy. Death before the complete expulsion or extraction from its mother of a product of conception, irrespective of the duration of pregnancy; the death is indicated by the fact that after such separation, the fetus does not breathe or show any other evidence of life, such as beating of the heart, pulsation of the umbilical cord, or definite movement of voluntary muscles.