A thick placenta: a predictor of adverse pregnancy outcomes

• Published in: SpringerPlus Vol. 3; no. 1; p. 353
• Main Authors: Miwa, Ichiro, Sase, Masakatsu, Torii, Mayumi, Sanai, Hiromi, Nakamura, Yasuhiko, Ueda, Kazuyuki
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Cham Springer International Publishing 11-07-2014; Springer Nature B.V
• Subjects: Humanities and Social Sciences; Medicine; multidisciplinary; Science; Science (multidisciplinary); Perinatal outcome; Thick placenta; Measurement of placental thickness; Ultrasonography
• ISSN: 2193-1801; 2193-1801
• DOI: 10.1186/2193-1801-3-353

Purpose
The aim of this study is to evaluate the efficacy of an ultrasonographic measurement of placental thickness and the correlation of a thick placenta with adverse perinatal outcome.
Methods
Placental thickness was measured in single gravidas, 16 to 40 weeks of gestation, between 2005 and 2009. Placentas were considered to be thick if their measured thickness were above the 95th percentile for gestational age.
Results
The incidence of thick placentas was 4.3% (138/3,183). Perinatal morbidity and neonatal conditions were worse in cases with thick placenta rather than without thick placenta.
Conclusions
Ultrasonographic measurement of placental thickness is a simple method to estimate placental size. Thick placenta may be a useful predictor of adverse pregnancy outcomes.