Pregnancy Signs & Symptoms, Week by Week Pregnancy Guide

If you are interested in the cerclage procedure you should know that this is a procedure of placing stitches into the cervix to keep it closed. Usually it is used to prevent an incompetent cervix from opening too soon. This is important to avoid preterm labor.

Information about the process of cerclage

As a preventive measure the process can be performed during weeks 12-14, even before the cervix thins out. It can also be used as an emergency measure when the cervix thins out. It is used only rarely after the 24^th week. Usually it is performed under regional or general anesthesia.

The cerclage process is normally done through the vagina. In order to spread the vaginal walls, the doctors insert a speculum into the vagina. There are several different ways to perform the surgery. It is possible to pace the stitches outside the cervix. Another option is to place a special tape around the cervix and stitch it.

The third option for the cerclage procedure is to make a small incision on the cervix. Then there is need to tie a special tape through the cervix and then close it. If the incompetent cervix isn’t diagnosed in time, it is possible for the amniotic sac of the woman to protrude through the cervix.

After the procedure of cerclage

There is need for a certain amount of recovery time. This usually depends on the kind of cerclage that the doctor performs. You should ask your doctor about what you can expect after the surgery. It is common for doctors to give their patients antibiotics to avoid the possible infections.

Why to have a cerclage procedure?

As it has been mentioned before, this is a routine procedure in case of an incompetent cervix. The women who have a miscarriage because of the abnormal shape of the cervix or uterus also have to go through this procedure. If the cervix is damaged, most probably it won’t remain closed during the pregnancy.

A cerclage operation is also offered if the patient lost a pregnancy in the third term or if she gave birth and had little or no contractions during labor. Again this suggests that the cervix won’t remain closed during a following pregnancy and in this case the procedure is performed as a safety measure.

Results

It is said that the cerclage procedure is successful if the patient can carry her pregnancy to term. In some cases the procedure helped the high-risk pregnancies last longer but there are also some risks associated to it: it could cause a miscarriage or an infection.

It may be useful to have a surgery of cerclage if a woman had a previous preterm labor because the cervix opened too soon. In this case the procedure could prevent a preterm labor.

Now you know more about the cerclage procedure and you can see that there are both upsides and downsides of the procedure. The decision usually depends on your health, medical history, concerns and your doctor’s point of view.