Braxton-Hicks contractions are commonly known as which of the following?

• A. True labor
• B. False labor
• C. Pre-labor
• D. Active labor

Answer: (B)

Braxton-Hicks contractions are false labor, a kind of irregular, often painless tightening of the uterus that helps the body prepare for real labor. They typically don’t become regular, don’t increase in strength or duration in a predictable way, and they don’t cause progressive cervical dilation or effacement. Because they don’t indicate that true labor has started, they’re not treated as the onset of labor by themselves. They can occur anytime in the later weeks of pregnancy and often lessen with rest, hydration, or changes in activity. True labor, by contrast, involves regular, increasing contractions that grow closer together, last longer, and ultimately cause the cervix to dilate and efface. That difference is why the correct label is false labor.