What do internal exams during the last month of pregnancy tell me? Why do I need them?

Some doctors and midwives tend to do internal checks routinely during the last month or so of pregnancy, while others don’t do them at all. Internal exams during the last month of your pregnancy are unfortunately a very poor indication of when your labor will begin.

What do health providers check during these exams?

Your doctor or midwife is checking for cervical dilation and effacement. Dilation is how far the cervix is open and is measured in centimeters 1-10. Effacement is how thin the cervix is – the cervix needs to completely soften and thin out in order to open much more than a couple centimeters.

Unfortunately, while it would seem that a woman who is “already” dilated to a 3 cm would begin labor and have her baby sooner than a woman who is not dilated at all, it just isn’t true. Woman can be dilated, especially in subsequent pregnancies, well before labor begins. Conversely, they can begin labor while hardly dilated at all, be told by their doctor they have plenty of time that morning, and be holding a baby by that night!

What other reasons would a health care provider to a vaginal check during pregnancy?

In late pregnancy a health care provider might do a vaginal check in order to strip your membranes. This intervention irritates the uterus and can trigger contractions, sometimes causing labor to begin. One of the drawbacks to this procedure, however, is that bacteria can be introduced during the check.

Occasionally the sack of waters will even break during this procedure which will automatically put a mom on the clock for delivering her baby, increasing the likelihood of a surgical birth. It is recommended to avoid this procedure prior to week 39, if you choose to have it done at all. Some health care providers strip membranes by routine so if this is something you want or don’t want be sure you’ve checked with your midwife or doctor to find out what they usually do the last month.

While it’s hard to stay patient that last month, for most pregnant women, internal exams aren’t really needed. High risk pregnancies, those trying to avoid a repeat Cesarean, or other reasons your health care provider might recommend having internal checks are, of course, something to discuss with him or her based on your unique pregnancy and needs.

Angela England is a busy mother of four who helps women and mothers earn an income through web-writing on www.angengland.com. Recently branching out into speaking and personal blog consultations, England stays active in a number of online venues. She is the author of the Making Money Blogging ebook which she wrote out of personal experience as a freelance writer. With articles appearing across several websites and print magazines since launching her writing career, her initial goal of “pizza money” and keeping her kids out of daycare has blossomed into full-time work.

England is the Founder of Untrained Housewife, Editor-in-Chief of Blissfully Domestic,Plants and Bulbs Feature Writer at Suite101, a Type-A-Parent Contributor, and also operates several smaller niche sites. Additionally, she maintains several certifications in her offline life as a licensed massage therapist and a CAPPA trained labor support doula and childbirth educator.

Happily married and living in rural Oklahoma, Angela can be found on both Twitter and Facebook.