Pessary to induce labor
16 May, 2022
Question:If a woman has a miscarriage or stillbirth, and she has not yet begun to bleed, if a pessary is used to help progress with the birth process, does the pessary itself – or the insertion of the pessary – cause her to become nidda? Or not? What is the reason for this?
Answer:Significant dilation of the uterus can make a woman niddah, even without bleeding. This principle applies when an instrument of sufficient diameter is inserted through the cervix into the uterus.
However, a pessary inserted into the vaginal canal to induce labor does not reach the cervix or uterus. Therefore, this procedure does not, in itself, make a woman niddah.
We hope that this answers your question. Please let us know if we can be of further assistance.
This internet service does not preclude, override or replace the psak of any rabbinical authority. It is the responsibility of the questioner to inform us of any previous consultation or ruling. As even slight variation in circumstances may have Halachic consequences, views expressed concerning one case may not be applied to other, seemingly similar cases. All health and health-related information contained within Nishmat's Women's Health & Halacha Web site is intended to be general in nature and should not be used as a substitute for consulting with your health care professional. The advice is intended to offer a basis for individuals to discuss their medical condition with their health care provider but not individual advice. Although every effort is made to ensure that the material within Nishmat's Women's Health & Halacha Web site is accurate and timely, it is provided for the convenience of the Web site user but should not be considered official. Advice for actual medical practice should be obtained from a licensed health care professional.
For further questions or comments: 
The Nishmat Women's Health and Halacha Site is a public service of Nishmat, The Jeanie Schottenstein Center for Advanced Torah Study for Women. This project and others like it are made possible by contributions from people like you. If you have benefited from the service, and wish to enable us to help others, click here to donate.
Users of Internet filtering services: This site discusses sensitive subjects that some services filter without visual indication. A page that appears 100% complete might actually be missing critical Jewish-law or medical information. To ensure that you view the pages accurately, ask the filtering service to whitelist all pages under yoatzot.org.
Ask a Yoetzet
Golda Koschitzky Hotline
