Placental pathologies

Question 1

Placenta praevia - what is it?

Answer 1

“low lying” placenta
Causes painless antepartum bleeding
Not likely to be detected in antenatal imaging

Question 2

What is placental abruption?

Answer 2

Separation of the placenta from the uterus prematurely.

Question 3

How does placental abruption present?

Answer 3

1. painful antepartum bleeding in which vaginal bleeding is disproportionately low in comparison to the patient’s true blood loss
2. “woody”, firm uterus
3. fetal distress on CTG

Question 4

What is Placenta accreta?

Answer 4

Describes the attachment of the placenta to the myometrium.

As the placenta does not properly detach during labour, there’s a risk of PPH.

Question 5

What is Vasa Praevia?

Answer 5

a condition in which the foetal blood vessels run near the internal opening of the uterus. This classically presents as the rupture of membranes followed by vaginal bleeding and foetal distress.