TOCODYNAMOMETER

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This is a device for measuring the pressure within a sphere or cylinder (such as the eye, pregnant uterus, or artery) using the principle that the pressure required to flatten a section of the wall is equal to the internal pressure. A tocodynamometer employs a flat disc which is pressed on to the object until the wall becomes flat. Usually a central pressure-measuring disc is employed with an outer guard ring so that a relatively large area is flattened but pressure is only measured from the central section. A tocodynamometer is the transducer used in the external monitoring of uterine contractions during labour using a cardiotocograph. See also Applanation tonometer, and Tonometer.