clinical pelvimetry

clinical pelvimetry,

a process used to assess the size of the birth canal by means of the systematic vaginal palpation of specific bony landmarks in the pelvis and an estimation of the distances between them. Internal pelvic diameters are not accessible to direct measurement; they must be inferred. Clinical pelvimetry is usually performed by a midwife or an obstetrician during the first prenatal examination of a pregnant woman. Findings are commonly recorded in terms such as adequate, borderline, or inadequate, rather than in centimeters or inches. Compare x-ray pelvimetry. See also birth canal, cephalopelvic disproportion, contraction, dystocia.