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The balloon is then inflated, which puts pressure on your cervix and amniotic sac. Your practitioner may insert a tube with a very small, uninflated balloon at the tip into the opening of your cervix, demonstrated here with this curled-up hand. If your labor needs to be induced, you may be treated with one or more of the following in the hospital:Ī foley catheter. There are a number of methods available to medically induce or ripen the cervix to get your labor moving. Or you or your baby face medical issues that pose a health threat, which is the case for Cheryl.Ĭheryl has an antibody in her blood that could harm her baby, so the induction is a precautionary measure to help avoid any problems. Your water breaks, but your labor doesn't start. You are a week or more past your due date, and you show no or slow signs of cervical dilation and labor. Narrator: Your doctor or midwife may choose to induce your labor for a number of reasons: As the cervix dilates, the labor progresses and ultimately the baby's delivered vaginally. Contractions hopefully will cause cervical dilatation. Carapellotti: We actually induce contractions. Richard Carapellotti, Cheryl's obstetrician.ĭr. There are many forms of induction but all have the same goal, says Dr. Today, Cheryl – 39 weeks pregnant – has arrived for her scheduled induction at Abington Memorial Hospital, in Abington, Pennsylvania.
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Narrator: Sometimes your body needs a little jumpstart to kick into labor.
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