The time interval between the procedure and the onset of labour is usually less than 48hrs. The point of it is to separate the sac surrounding your baby from the cervix and trigger natural labour. The midwife or obstetrician puts a finger into the cervix and makes a circular or sweeping movement with their fingers. I have had other women with the cervix fully or partly closed and they have laboured soon after. What happens during a membrane sweep This is a bit like an internal examination and doesn’t take long. While labour onset is more likely when the cervix is favourable, I have done the procedure on women with a very favourable and open cervix, and they have not gone into labour. The onset of labour after the procedure is unpredictable. This is done to encourage labor but can also cause some bleeding because your. They will use gloved fingers to loosen the baby’s bag of water (amniotic sac) from your uterus. Doing so is usually very uncomfortable and some women, though keen, can’t tolerate the discomfort and so the procedure is abandoned. Towards the end of your pregnancy, your healthcare provider may perform a membrane sweep while checking your cervix for dilation. The reasons might be: You have been diagnosed with gestational diabetes. Occasionally this might be offered earlier if there is a non-urgent medical reason for your baby to be born. Sometimes when this is the case it is possible to stretch the cervical canal and consequently the internal os is opened and the procedure can be completed. A membrane sweep is commonly offered as an initial induction method if you’re past your due date or you are nearly at 42 weeks. Sometimes the external os (cervix opening) is open to admit a finger, but the cervix is uneffaced (long) and the internal os is closed. Known as stretch-and-sweep, sweeping the membranes, or stripping the membranes. It is not possible to do the procedure if the cervix is closed and does not admit a finger. Your midwife may offer you a membrane sweep towards the end of pregnancy. Labour onset is more likely if, when the procedure is done, the cervix is open, has started to shorten, is in an anterior position and the baby’s head is well applied to the cervix, engaged in the pelvis. Not all women will go into labour after a cervical stretch and membrane sweep.

Does a cervical stretch and membrane sweep always work?

Membrane sweep