Probe device is more reliable in cervical stiffness assessment than digital palpation

The cervix undergoes dramatic physical changes during pregnancy. Understanding how cervix length, stiffness, and dilation evolve helps clinicians anticipate a timely delivery. While length and dilation are relatively straightforward to measure, stiffness is open to interpretation. In fact, measuring by feel alone could be unreliable altogether. A new study reports the accuracy of a device that measures cervical softness more scientifically, using negative pressure to estimate consistency.

00:31 - The findings suggest a new way of taking cervical stiffness measurements that are both reliable and reproducible. The authors of the study created five silicone models of the cervix. Participants then took turns estimating the consistency of each model. Five self-trained participants measured the models using the Pregnolia System. Users placed the probe directly on the cervix model, and an aspiration force gently pulled the tissue into the probe tip by a fixed distance.

01:01 - Meanwhile, 63 clinicians—33 of them obstetricians and 30 midwives—used the digital palpation method to grade each model as soft, medium, or firm. For digital palpation, results showed no common agreement among clinicians on the stiffness of the models, except for the softest cervix. In fact, even when assessing the same cervix a second time, 76% of clinicians disagreed with their previous assessment. In contrast, the variation in stiffness measured by the Pregnolia System was minimal. The maximum standard deviation between measurements made by the same observer and that between different observers was approximately 3%.

01:43 - These dramatic differences suggest that compared with digital palpation, the Pregnolia System could be far more objective and reliable in the measurement of cervical stiffness. Incorporating the device in the clinic could help obstetricians and midwives more accurately predict delivery times and thereby ensure the health of both newborns and their mothers. .