What is the Bishop Score? | Window to the Womb

The Bishop Score is used to assess the ripeness of your cervix. Your midwife will need to find this out before inducting labour because it helps to tell whether your body is ready to go into labour.

Your Bishop score is based on the findings of a vaginal examination by your midwife. With a gloved finger, she will assess the condition and position of your cervix and will work out where your baby is in relation to certain points on your pelvis.

Your Bishop Score is based on the following factors:

  • How dilated your cervix is (the more open the better)

  • How short your cervix is (the shorter the better)

  • How far down in your pelvis your baby’s head or bottom is (the lower down the better)

  • The consistency of your cervix, whether it’s firm or soft (the softer the better)

  • The position of your cervix, whether pointing backwards or forwards (pointing forwards is better)

A score of 8 or more indicates that your cervix is ripe and ready for labour.

A Bishop score of less than 6 indicates an unripe cervix. About 15% of attempted inductions that start with an unripe cervix fail to work.
If you have a low Bishop score, you might decide that you don’t want to try any induction methods. You will have the option to wait and see if labour starts naturally or you may opt for a caesarean. Your midwife or doctor will discuss your situation with you and your birth partner to help you make the decision that is right for both you and your baby.

You can also take this approach once the induction process has started. If prostaglandins (learn more about those in our previous blog) are used as a first step to get your labour started, your midwife will calculate your Bishop score again after a set time.

If your Bishop score is still low and your labour hasn’t started or progressed, you can decide whether you want to carry on trying with stronger interventions such as the Syntocinon drip or have a caesarean. Or, if it’s safe to do so, you may want to give yourself some more time to let your labour start naturally.

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