A "cookie" is a small piece of information which a web server can store temporarily with a web browser. This is useful for having the browser remember some specific information which the web server can later retrieve. For example, when you browse through a "virtual shopping mall" and add items to your "shopping cart" as you browse, a list of the items you've picked up is stored by your browser so that you can pay for all of the items at once when you're finished shopping. It's much more efficient for each browser to keep track of information like this than to expect the web server to have to remember which browser (of the thousands of browsers that might be using it at a time) bought what. A "persistent" cookie remains on your computer even after you close your browser; these types of cookies can be used, for example, to help a web site recognize you when you return. "Session" cookies only last as long as you're on the site that uses them, or until you close your browser.
A cookie file is NOT a secret way for a web server to find out everything about you and what you have on your hard drive. The only way that any private information could be in your cookie file would be if you personally gave that information to a web server in the first place and it decided to put that information into your cookie file for some reason. There is absolutely no way for a web server to get access to any private information about your system through cookies.
OBGYN.net uses both "persistent" and "session" cookies to enhance your experience while using our web site. If you have disabled cookies many enhanced features of our site will be inaccessible.