Para is best described as?

• A. Number of living children
• B. Number of births past 20 weeks
• C. Number of pregnancies
• D. Age at first pregnancy

Answer: (B)

Para refers to the number of pregnancies that have reached viability and been carried to a birth beyond a certain gestational age, typically 20 weeks. It focuses on birth events after that threshold, not on all pregnancies or on living children alone. For example, a pregnancy that ends in a miscarriage before 20 weeks does not add to para, and a single pregnancy that results in twins still counts as one para. This is why para is described as the number of births past 20 weeks.

In contrast, counting the number of living children would be affected by miscarriages or stillbirths, and counting all pregnancies would be gravida, not para. The age at first pregnancy is unrelated to how many pregnancies have reached viability.