“…In general, parameters which measure softness are based on propagation of shear waves (Carlson et al, 2014a(Carlson et al, ,b, 2015(Carlson et al, , 2018Huang et al, 2016;Hernandez-Andrade et al, 2013;Molina et al, 2012;Muller et al, 2015;Rosado-Mendez et al, 2017, 2018 and those which quantify microstructural organization are based on backscattered echo signals from the propagation of compressional waves (McFarlin et al, 2006(McFarlin et al, , 2010(McFarlin et al, , 2015aLabyed et al, 2011;Feltovich et al, 2010Feltovich et al, , 2012. Shear wave speed (SWS) estimation can quantify softness of the pregnant cervix in both women and Rhesus (Carlson et al, 2014a(Carlson et al, ,b, 2015(Carlson et al, , 2018Muller et al, 2015;Huang et al, 2016;Rosado-Mendez et al, 2017, 2018. Importantly, however, while SWS is a valuable biomarker of cervical remodeling, it provides no insight into why or how the tissue is becoming softer or more compliant (Feltovich and Hall, 2013).…”