effacement (redirected from efface)

effacement /ef·face·ment/ (ĕ-fās´ment) the obliteration of features; said of the cervix during labor when it is so changed that only the external os remains.

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Effacement

The thinning out of the cervix that normally occurs along with dilation shortly before delivery.

Mentioned in: Incompetent Cervix

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effacement

[ifās′mənt]

Etymology: Fr, effacer, to erase

the shortening of the vaginal portion of the cervix and thinning of its walls as it is stretched and dilated by the fetus during labor. When the cervix is fully effaced, the constrictive neck of the uterus is obliterated; the cervix is then continuous with the lower uterine segment. The extent of effacement, determined by vaginal examination, is expressed as a percentage of full effacement. See also birth, cervix, dilation, station.

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effacement

the obliteration of form or features; applied to the cervix uteri during labor when it is so changed that only the ostium uteri remains.

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effacement

Obstetrics The process that occurs during the last month of pregnancy, extending through the 1^st stage of labor in which the cervix and endocervix become thinner and shorter; the canal is thus converted from a tube to a flaring funnel