Negative value (-5 to -1): Indicates that the baby's head is not engaged in the pelvis. Positive value (0 to +4): Indicates that the baby's head is moving down the pelvis, whereas a +5 indicates that the baby is crowning (being born).
The baby is said to be "engaged" when the largest part of the head has entered the pelvis. If the presenting part lies above the ischial spines, the station is reported as a negative number from -1 to -5.
Usually about two weeks before delivery, your baby will drop into the birth canal. This is called being “engaged.” At this point, your baby is at station 0. This drop into the birth canal is called a lightening.
When the baby's head is two centimeters above the ischial spines it is at a -2 station. When the head is level with the ischial spines it is at 0 station. When it is two centimeters below the ischial spines, the head is at a +2 station.
If the baby's presenting part is at 1 cm below the ischial spines…the fetal station would be +1.
Negative value (-5 to -1): Indicates that the baby's head is not engaged in the pelvis. Positive value (0 to +4): Indicates that the baby's head is moving down the pelvis, whereas a +5 indicates that the baby is crowning (being born).
What Is Crowning? This is when you can see the top of your baby's head through the opening of your vagina. This moment happens during the second stage of labor, when you push and deliver your newborn. Once your baby crowns, you push out the rest of their body.
Is the baby ballotable or well engaged?” Answers like, “The baby is high,” or, “The baby isn't in the pelvis yet,” also mean “-3” station. Engagement in labor is often due to the mother choosing a position that opens the brim, and is less likely in the first time mother to be by chance or time.
0 station: The baby has descended to the point that the head has reached the bottom of the pelvis. This is the point at which the baby is said to have dropped and is fully engaged. +3 station: The point in labor at which the baby's head is beginning to emerge from the birth canal.
Fetal station is stated in negative and positive numbers. -5 station is a floating baby. -3 station is when the head is above the pelvis. 0 station is when the head is at the bottom of the pelvis, also known as being fully engaged.
When your baby is ready to begin the journey through the birth canal, your cervix dilates from fully closed to 10 centimeters. This process can take hours, days, or even weeks. But once you hit active labor – about 6 cm dilated – it's usually just a matter of hours before you reach full dilation.
Usual stations you may hear are as high as -4, then -3, -2, and -1. If baby is at the ischial spine, they are considered zero (0) station. If baby is below the ischial spine, they are considered a plus (+) number. The higher the number, the lower baby is in the pelvis.
Ideally for labor, the baby is positioned head-down, facing your back, with the chin tucked to its chest and the back of the head ready to enter the pelvis. This is called cephalic presentation. Most babies settle into this position with the 32nd and 36th week of pregnancy.
Station is another term used to indicate the progress of labor, and it refers to the position of the baby's “presenting part” in relation to the ischial spines in the pelvis. A zero station means the presenting part (usually the baby's head) is level with the spines.
Station is the position of baby's head as it relates to the ischial spines (bony spots on each side of the pelvis). It's measured on a scale of -5 (head floating above the pelvis) to +5 (head crowning at the vagina's opening).
A contraction stress test tells you whether your baby's heart rate slows down: Normal (negative) results mean your baby's heart rate doesn't stay slow after a contraction (late decelerations). Abnormal (positive) results mean your baby's heart rate slows down and stays slow after a contraction.
If the mother is Rh-negative, her immune system treats Rh-positive fetal cells as if they were a foreign substance. The mother's body makes antibodies against the fetal blood cells. These antibodies may cross back through the placenta into the developing baby. They destroy the baby's circulating red blood cells.
To many women, crowning feels like an intense burning or stinging sensation. This is where that “ring of fire” term comes from. Others share that crowning didn't feel at all like they had expected.
The time between dilating to 1 cm and giving birth varies from woman to woman. One woman may go from having a closed cervix to giving birth in a matter of hours, while another is 1–2 cm dilated for days or weeks. Some women do not experience any dilation until they go into active labor.
If your water (aka “amniotic sac,” “bag of waters” or “membranes”) hasn't broken on its own when you arrive at the hospital, and you're five or more centimeters dilated, your OB might recommend bursting the bag by hand—especially if your cervix seems to be making slow (or no) progress.
During the first stage of labor, your cervix will start to open (dilate) and thin out (efface) to allow your baby to move through your birth canal. Dilation starts at 1 centimeter (less than 1/2 inch) and goes all the way to 10 centimeters before there's enough space to push your baby into the world.
The stations have been clubbed into 3 groups i.e. Non-suburban (NSG), Suburban (SG) and Halt (HG). Further these groups have been put in grades ranging from 1-6, 1-3 and 1-3 respectively.