Perioperative management of the female and gravid patient.

Care of female and gravid patients requires a detailed understanding of the unique issues inherent to quality treatment. Increasingly important data continue to accumulate about significant differences in the physiology of men and women and the way they express disease. Furthermore, the gravid patient requires specific alterations and considerations in clinical care that not only affect the mother but also the fetus. This article focuses on key elements that the treating surgeon should consider.