What is a "fingertip" dilated?

J&JSuiter070205 · November 2011

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smiles_jds2003 · November 2011

Dilated some but less than 1 cm, basically enought for the person checking you to be able to fit their fingertip in your cervical os.

katcarls · November 2011

I think it's less than 1cm.

ctaylor0402 · November 2011

Is this dilated enough to ask our DR to strip your membranes or do you have to be dilated more?

J&JSuiter070205 · November 2011

ctaylor0402:
Is this dilated enough to ask our DR to strip your membranes or do you have to be dilated more?

i'm not sure you have to be dilated at all for them to strip your membranes because it won't do anything if you're not ready to go in to labor, but if you are it will help "jump start" things. My OB striped my membranes at 38w with my daughter--I went into labor at 39w exactly so it didn't really do anything for me.

LiebeMama · November 2011

Lol, good question because I suppose if it were truly based off of a fingertip, it would all depend on who's fingertip it was!

teacherlindz · November 2011

I was wondering the same thing! I am only 28 weeks and a few days and I am already 1/2 cm dilated according to L&D last week, but they didn't use that term with me.

ctaylor0402 · November 2011

J&JSuiter070205:
ctaylor0402:
Is this dilated enough to ask our DR to strip your membranes or do you have to be dilated more?
i'm not sure you have to be dilated at all for them to strip your membranes because it won't do anything if you're not ready to go in to labor, but if you are it will help "jump start" things. My OB striped my membranes at 38w with my daughter--I went into labor at 39w exactly so it didn't really do anything for me.

Thank you! I have been thinking about asking my OB if she will strip them to see if I will go into labor on my own so maybe I wont have to be induced on the 20th.

precbaby3 · November 2011

I am not a doc but i will tell you what a L&D nurse told me:) It is when the end of the cervix that they check is starting to open, but not through the whole length of the cervix, just the length of a fingertip, which means the end is opening and getting ready but your still "closed up by the end where the head is. Hopefully that makes sense. It did when she told me, and she may be wrong but it seems like a logical explanation!

NicoleWright8 · November 2011

I always joked that it's what the doctors told you to make you feel like you were making progress even though you really weren't.

Bananappeal145 · November 2011

ctaylor0402:
Is this dilated enough to ask our DR to strip your membranes or do you have to be dilated more?

I was told this morning at my appt that I was a fingertip dilated and it was not open enough to strip my membranes Sad Que me trying to hold it together in the car on the way home. So. ready. for. this. baby.

dottymobo · November 2011

ctaylor0402:
Is this dilated enough to ask our DR to strip your membranes or do you have to be dilated more?

You have to be dilated more, I'm fairly sure. Your cervix has to be open enough for your doctor to reach through with a finger and then be able to sweep their finger around between the baby side of your cervix/uterus and the placenta. Looking at my finger and picturing it, I'd think that you'd need at least a cm to be able to do anything worthwhile at all.