Episiotomy

An episiotomy is an incision through the vaginal wall and the perineum to enlarge the vaginal opening and facilitate childbirth. During a vaginal birth, the health care provider will assist the fetus’ head and chin out of the vagina when it becomes visible. Once the head is out of the vagina, the shoulders are eased out, followed by the rest of the body. In some cases, the vaginal opening does not stretch enough to accommodate the fetus. In this case, an episiotomy may be done to help enlarge the opening and deliver the fetus. The episiotomy is usually done when the fetal head has stretched the vaginal opening to several centimeters during a contraction. Although episiotomy was a very common procedure in the past, more recent studies have found that routine or preventive use of episiotomy does not benefit the health of mother or baby.