During an antenatal visit, a midwife or doctor often examines your baby using a technique called abdominal palpation, which means examining by touching and feeling. It is used to check your baby’s position and growth.
What the examination involves#
The way the baby is lying affects what the midwife or doctor feels. A baby may be in the vertex (head-down) position or in the breech (bottom-down) position.
When a baby is head down, the examination may include:
- Assessing the height of the fundus (the top of the uterus) by checking how many fingerbreadths it sits below the xiphisternum (the lower end of the breastbone).
- Assessing the baby’s size and feeling for the baby’s back and limbs.
- Pawlik’s grip, in which the lower part of the uterus is gently grasped to work out which part of the baby is presenting first.
- Pelvic palpation to determine the position of the baby’s head in relation to your pelvis.
- Measuring the height of the fundus, which generally corresponds to the number of weeks of pregnancy.
- Listening to the baby’s heartbeat, often with a hand-held Doppler ultrasound device.
When a baby is in the breech position, the examination may include:
- Checking the height of the fundus (the highest point of the uterus). At around 20 weeks this measurement is taken from the navel, and near the end of pregnancy (about 37 to 40 weeks) it is taken from the lower end of the breastbone (the xiphisternum).
- Assessing the baby’s position and size and feeling for the baby’s head, back and limbs.
- Using Pawlik’s grip to check whether the baby’s buttocks are settled in the pelvis.
- Listening to the baby’s heartbeat.
Where to get help#
Sources & further reading
For evidence-based global guidance on this topic, consult authoritative public-health bodies such as the World Health Organization (WHO), CDC, NHS, and ECDC.