Ladin's sign is a clinical sign of pregnancy in which there is softening in the midline of the uterus anteriorly at the junction of the uterus and cervix. It occurs and is detectable with a manual examination at about 6 weeks' gestation.[1] Ladin's sign is often present during the woman's first pelvic exam when pregnancy is suspected.[2] Cervical length is also significant in pregnancy and shorter or shortening length can increase chances of preterm labour and delivery as this shortening happens naturally at the beginning of labour.[3] The cervix softens from conception and combined with other signs of early pregnancy, detecting Ladin's sign can assist clinicians in verifying a diagnosis of pregnancy.[4]
Abnormal softening of the cervix can also occur in pregnancy, so testing for abnormalities of uterine cervical softening, including sheer wave speed measurement, can be used as a method of distinguishing between normal and abnormal softening.[5]
^Alan H. DeCherney, Martin L. Pernoll, Lauren Nathan. Current Obstetric & Gynecologic Diagnosis & Treatment, page 196. McGraw-Hill Professional, 2002. ISBN978-0-8385-1401-6. Google books
^Badir S, Mazza E, Zimmermann R, Bajka M (August 2013). "Cervical softening occurs early in pregnancy: characterization of cervical stiffness in 100 healthy women using the aspiration technique". Prenatal Diagnosis. 33 (8): 737–41. doi:10.1002/pd.4116. PMID23553612. S2CID25260888.
