[TRANSCRIPT OF ANSWER]

The Pelvis and Birth

Yes and no. But the pelvis has to be tested to see if the shape has an impact. Oftentimes you’ll see it. A provider will do an examination and has an assessment to suggest that the pelvis may be too narrow, too small. Maybe there are certain bones and the pelvis called spines that may be too prominent to me, kind of hang up the descending part of the baby. So that’s kind of like a guesstimation. We used to try to determine the shape of the pelvis with CT scans and x-rays. You don’t see much of that being done anymore because it truly is determined by the test of labor.

So no matter what the pelvis is shaped, labor is going to determine whether this baby is going to traverse through it, and then that will become evident. The challenge with some of that is the provider will say to the mother, ‘I don’t think we should test labor’ and they may proceed straight to surgical birth. So any subsequent opportunities to be pregnant and or test labor, it is probably going to be stifled emotionally.

Pregnancy Questions And Answers
Brad S. Bootstaylor, MD, FACOG is board certified in Obstetrics and Gynecology and Maternal-Fetal Medicine by the American Board of Obstetrics and Gynecology. He has been in private practice in Atlanta since 1996 and is a co-founder of Atlanta Perinatal Associates, departing this company in 2009.... Read More