The mother pushes with each contraction, while the doctor pulls the ventouse.

There are several indications to use a ventouse to aid delivery:

Obstetric forceps or ventouse may be used to facilitate childbirth.

They can be used to assist the delivery of a baby as an alternative to the ventouse (vacuum extraction) method.

If the ventouse attempt fails, it may be necessary to deliver the infant by forceps or caesarean section.

A chignon is a temporary swelling left on an infant's head after a ventouse suction cap has been used to deliver him or her.

Surgically assisting labor, by forceps or the Ventouse (a suction cap applied to the fetus' head)

I needed a ventouse extraction with my first child - with the epidural and having now delivered without an epidural - I understand why.

For proper use of the ventouse, the maternal cervix has to be fully dilated, the head engaged in the birth canal, and the head position known.

When the cup of the ventouse is applied on the flexion point, the fetal head will remain flexed under traction, hence the name "flexion point".

Docteur ventouse, bobologue (2 albums 1985-86, Bretecher/Hyphen)

There's some evidence that ventouse is less painful for you afterwards than forceps, but research indicates that forceps may be less distressing to your baby.

Macrosomia in turn increases the risk of instrumental deliveries (e.g. forceps, ventouse and caesarean section) or problems during vaginal delivery (such as shoulder dystocia).

In obstetrics, the term flexion point refers to a spot on the fetal head on which the cup of a ventouse should to be placed for extraction of the child to be most effective.

Forceps Ventouse, sometimes known as vacuum extraction Caesarean section Using forceps or a ventouse is sometimes known as 'instrumental delivery'.

My baby was consequently delivered by ventouse (when a suction cup attached to a vacuum pump is placed on the baby's head while it is in the birth canal and is used to pull it out).

With the finger on the flexion point and palmar surface in a superior direction, note where the back of the finger makes contact with the fourchette (this is used to determine how far the ventouse cup must be inserted).

In some instances, however, this is not the case, and many health care practitioners - especially osteopaths - believe the "unmoulding" process fails to complete, particularly where the birth was difficult and instruments such as forceps or a ventouse were used.

In the last decades, however, with the ability to perform a cesarean section relatively safely, and the introduction of the ventouse or vacuum extractor, the use of forceps and training in the technique of its use has sharply declined.