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Before you give birth,
your cervix has to be ready

At the beginning of your birthing journey is an open cervix—but this does not happen to all women automatically. And that’s completely common. In that case, we just need to help the cervix to soften and dilate. This is called “cervical ripening”.

What is labour induction?

A relaxed, dilated cervix is just one aspect of inducing labour. In short, labour induction is completing your pregnancy by natural birth. This process involves several important steps.

Induction of labour can take anywhere from several hours to a few days. Studies show around 40–70% of DILAPAN-S inductions deliver within 24 hours of arriving at the hospital. It depends on both the clinical protocol used and how the process goes on.

Induction of Labour

What is labour induction?

A relaxed, dilated cervix is just one aspect of inducing labour. In short, labour induction is completing your pregnancy by natural birth. This process involves several important steps.

Induction of labour can take anywhere from several hours to a few days. Studies show around 40–70% of DILAPAN-S inductions deliver within 24 hours of arriving at the hospital. It depends on both the clinical protocol used and how the process goes on.

Inductions are more frequent than you may think. In fact, 1 in 3 pregnant women are induced.

Induction of labour process

Here are the 5 typical steps of induction. Actually, you may only need a couple of these to go into labour. Every childbirth is unique and may vary for everyone. However, one of the essential steps is the cervical ripening—this is when DILAPAN-S is used.

step 1

Assesing your
cervix

step 2

Preparing your
cervix

step 3

Breaking your

waters

step 4

Starting your

contractions

step 5

Meeting your baby

Still unsure about what cervical ripening means?

Imagine that you are the baby and you find yourself in a room with a closed door. The room in this story is a uterus, and the closed door is a cervix. If a big bouncer—contractions—tries to throw you out through the closed door, the outcome won’t be ideal.

First, we have to open the door, so that you can leave safely and comfortably. DILAPAN-S can help open the door for you. 

Why choose DILAPAN-S?

What to expect with DILAPAN-S

Designed to support the natural ripening process, opening your cervix gently over time.

1. Insertion

Your clinician will carefully place small DILAPAN-S dilators (usually 3–5) into your cervix.

2. Relax

The DILAPAN-S dilators will gradually expand, gently helping your cervix to soften and dilate.