A Foley Catheter is a thin, flexible tube that may be put in the urethera to drain the bladder, or in the vagina and through the cervix, causing the cervix to ‘ripen’. Foley catheters have an inflatable balloon that keeps them in place. When used to induce labour, the catheter is taped to the inner thigh, so the pressure of the balloon on the cervix acts like pressure of the baby’s head, causing the cervix to ripen. Once the cervix is ripe, the balloon falls out.
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