pessary

American  

[pes-uh-ree] / ˈpɛs ə ri /

noun

Medicine/Medical.

plural

pessaries

1. a device worn in the vagina to support a displaced uterus.

2. a vaginal suppository.

3. diaphragm.

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pessary British  

/ ˈpɛsərɪ /

noun

1. a device for inserting into the vagina, either as a support for the uterus or ( diaphragm pessary ) to deliver a drug, such as a contraceptive

2. a medicated vaginal suppository

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Etymology

Origin of pessary

1350–1400; Middle English pessarie < Late Latin pessārium a suppository, equivalent to Latin pess ( um ), pess ( us ) (< Greek pessós oval stone used in a game) + -ārium -ary

Example Sentences

She has been working with a pelvic health physiotherapist and uses a vaginal pessary, a device that helps to support the vaginal walls and pelvic organs, which means she feels more confident doing exercise.

From BBC • Jan. 12, 2024

A pessary, Gordon says, is “a version of a diaphragm.”

From National Geographic • Feb. 19, 2016

“The surgery was like a miracle” said Potts, whose uterine prolapse had worsened over eight years and was not alleviated by a pessary.

From Washington Post • Dec. 22, 2015

To treat uterine prolapse – a condition post-menopausal women and moms who’ve had vaginal births are especially prone to – a rubber device called a pessary can be inserted into the vagina to support the uterus.

From US News • Feb. 26, 2015

But these articles are not so clean or effective as the occlusive rubber pessary.

From Safe Marriage A Return to Sanity by Lane, William Arbuthnot