ballottement

n. Medicine
A palpatory technique for detecting or examining a floating object in the body, as:

1. The use of a finger to push sharply against the uterus and detect the presence or position of a fetus by its return impact.
2. Palpation of the abdominal wall while a kidney is being pushed sharply from the backside, used as a test for determining the presence of a floating kidney.

[French, from ballotter, to toss, from Italian ballotta, diminutive of dialectal balla, ball. See balloon.]

(bə-lŏt'mənt)
n.

1. A palpatory technique for detecting or examining an organ not near the surface of the body.
2. The use of a finger to push sharply against the uterus and detect the presence or position of a fetus by its return impact.

[Fr.] a palpatory maneuver to test for a floating object, especially for detecting pregnancy by pushing the fist, in the case of cows, the fingertips in the case of ewes, into the abdominal wall, causing the fetus to move from and quickly return to the fist or fingers.

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The noun has one meaning:

Meaning #1: a palpatory technique for feeling a floating object in the body (especially for determining the position of a fetus by feeling the rebound of the fetus after a quick digital tap on the wall of the uterus)

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