The cervix as a biomechanical structure

Ours is a time of breathtaking advances in understanding molecular antecedents of medical disease. Yet the wizardry of modern molecular biology cannot directly address what obstetricians suspect to be important: cervical deformation. Deformation, or the lack thereof, is a question of solid mechanics. Investigation of cervical deformation requires a concerted, collaborative effort between engineers, biologists and clinicians. A multidisciplinary effort may allow a better understanding of the questions that both obstetricians and parents know to be important: why does preterm birth occur and what can be done to prevent it? Copyright © 2006 ISUOG. Published by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.