Sometimes a birth needs to be ended quickly, in which case a ventouse is used, which is there to help during contractions. Under the right conditions, a ventouse is the fastest option to end labour, compared to, for example, a C-section. The ventouse looks like a small cup that is attached to the baby’s head with the help of pressure.

If you and your baby need help being the labour to an end, the staff can use a ventouse. The person giving birth and their partner, if they have one, will of course be informed if this is necessary.

Many women are afraid of the ventouse, but it is important that you as the person giving birth understand that it is still you who is giving birth to your child. You just get a little help from the outside. It is also common to feel a sense of relief when the need for a ventouse arises, because it is something that is used when the person in labour or the uterus can’t really take it anymore, or if the baby needs help to come out a little faster.

The ventouse is attached to the baby’s head through the vagina and then the obstetrician helps to pull while you push through the pain. It is important to know that a ventouse increases the risk of tears, but the midwife or doctor will help protect the perineum to try to avoid or reduce this risk.

When a ventouse is used, you need to lie with your legs in leg supports. You will then be anaesthetised if this hasn’t already been done (for example, spinal anaesthesia). If the amniotic fluid has not drained away, the midwife will make a hole in the amniotic membrane so that the ventouse can be attached to the baby’s head. It is not uncommon for the obstetrician to then release the ventouse when the baby is very close to being born, so that you can push the baby out yourself during the last contractions. This also allows the tissue to stretch more naturally.

The child’s head is temporarily reshaped where the ventouse was, but quickly returns to its normal shape. What’s more common is bleeding into the skin of the baby’s head, known as a cephalohematoma, but note that this is not a brain bleed. If your child shows signs of being in pain, they are given pain relief medicatoin (paracetamol via the rectum).

In order for a ventouse to be used, you need to be fully dilated and the baby’s head must have moved sufficiently into the birth canal. It is ideal that your bladder be empty as a full bladder can obstruct the birth canal. If you need help with this, it is common to have your urine drained with the help of a urinary catheter.

There are continuous risk assessments at the hospital, and these are the basis for the decisions that are then made. If the obstetrician suggests that you give birth using a ventouse, it must be because the other options (e.g. C-section) involve a higher risk of complications.

More staff will probably come into the delivery room so that the birth can end as safely as possible – both for you and for the baby. Sometimes paediatricians and paediatric nurses will also be waiting outside the room, in case your child is unwell and needs a little extra help.

If you feel that the birth was dramatic or remember it in a negative light, it is good to book a return visit with the obstetrician, where you can go through the birth together, if you have not already been offered one. There can be a benefit in letting some time pass, as questions can often arise once you have settled in. You can also talk to a doctor in the maternity ward before you go home.