During pregnancy, a woman should pay maximum attention to her health. To ensure the safety of the fetus, the doctor conducts an examination and makes the necessary tests, including examining the cervix during pregnancy. But if a smear was made within three years before conception and showed a good result, then there is no urgent need for a second analysis. If pathology was found in the results of the last smear, then a repeat of the procedure is required.
The cervix during pregnancy can undergo changes, for example, an abnormality in the epithelial cells is often detected. Minor changes do not require additional treatment, it is just necessary to regularly do colposcopy. It is worth noting that this procedure is completely harmless to the fetus.
It is inherent nature that the cervix during pregnancy in the later stages begins active preparation for childbirth. That is, it becomes softer and shorter due to the action of the female hormone estrogen. The attending physician examines the birth canal, after which he concludes the maturity of the cervix and the degree of its readiness for childbirth. During pregnancy, a woman's body produces progesterone - a hormone that is responsible for the stability of the uterine tone and prevents miscarriage. In the last trimester, the level of this hormone decreases significantly, which gives a “green light” for estrogen activity.
If after examination it was revealed that the cervix was not prepared for the birth process, then we can talk about its immaturity. In this case, doctors carry out the artificial preparation of the cervix for childbirth, for example, by creating a special hormonal background due to the administration of drugs containing estrogen, intramuscularly. But European clinics do not practice this method, but prefer to inject prostaglandin in the form of an intravenous solution or the cervix during pregnancy is treated with this drug in the form of a gel.
Very often, the opening of the cervix during pregnancy is carried out through the use of special sticks created from seaweed, they are also called bourgeois. Algae is injected into the cervical canal in a prone position, they absorb mucus and swell. So in a natural way there is an expansion of the cervix. In addition, miraculous algae contribute to the release of prostaglandins due to the archidonic acid contained in them. If the procedure did not give the desired result the first time, then after 24 hours, you can re-prepare the cervix.
Directly before childbirth, it should open, otherwise the birth process will not begin and you will have to resort to a cesarean section. For normal labor, it is necessary that the cervix during pregnancy opens about 10 centimeters. But some women experience weak contractions, almost without feeling unpleasant sensations. This may indicate that the stimulation of contractions began in the lower part of the uterus, which means that the cervix does not receive the proper impulse to open.
Most often, non-disclosure of the cervix occurs in women giving birth after 35 years. This is not surprising, because in the process of bearing and giving birth to a child, absolutely all internal organs and vital systems are involved. With age, most women develop certain chronic diseases, and the activity of these systems becomes exposed to external factors and threats. As a rule, pregnant women with the threat of non-disclosure of the cervix or the presence of pathologies are placed for preservation in the hospital. This is done in order to be under the supervision of obstetricians from the very beginning of childbirth.
And most importantly, in no case should you be afraid of childbirth, because unnecessary feelings can instinctively stop the birth process and prevent the uterus from opening, and you can only harm yourself and the unborn baby.