The results of the painstaking work and study which have been carried on to increase the comfort and safety of mothers and babies have made it possible for the doctors to plan something of a routine which they find advisable for their patients to adopt. To begin with, it is quite plain that the first need of every expectant mother is examination and measurement, early in pregnancy, by a good physician. The information thus obtained helps the doctor to foretell the kind of labor that his patient is likely to have, and by planning for it ahead of time he is often able to save her much harm and suffering. An early examination also enables the doctor to discover and correct any slight trouble which may exist at that time and which might grow worse if not treated, and to advise his patient about the general care which he wishes her to take of herself throughout pregnancy. In regard to this care, doctors are generally agreed that the average woman needs to do little more than observe the ordinary rules of personal hygiene, which as a matter of fact, should be followed by all of us; that is, she should live a simple, regular life as to diet, fresh air, exercise, rest, sleep, diversions, etc. This all sounds simple enough and as a matter of course, but it is usually overlooked in spite of being of the most urgent importance to both mother and baby. This advice varies in little things, here and there, among different doctors, but in the main it is about the same the world over, where thought is being given to the care of expectant mothers. For no matter where they are or what their status, their needs in general are the same. They need a doctor’s supervision and they need to practice the principles of personal hygiene. Accordingly, in addition to making an early examination and giving instructions about the regulation of her daily life, the doctor usually wants to see his patient and make certain observations every little while during pregnancy, just to make sure that everything is going as it should and to be in a position to discover the earliest and slightest symptoms of complications. In the old days there were certain complications associated with childbirth which the doctors did not know how to prevent and sometimes could not cure—complications which were bad for both mother and baby. But now they know a great deal about both preventing and curing even the most serious of these complications. They have discovered, for one thing, that many conditions which give serious trouble during labor, or soon afterwards, actually have their beginnings during pregnancy, and sometimes very early.