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Original poster

Low lying placenta - Can it move back???

19 replies

lumpylumps · 05/03/2012 20:18

My friend is 26 weeks and has been told she has a low lying placenta. She's been told she will have regular scans to monitor this but was just wondering if once it has moved (presuming it will) can it move back????

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Dlamis · 05/03/2012 20:29

It it does move (in most cases it does but not all) it won't move back. The placenta is attached to the wall of the womb and as the womb expands the area where the placenta is attached will move up and away from the cervix. The scans will be to check whether any of the placenta is covering/partially covering the cervix. Think of the womb as a balloon. If you draw a dot near the bottom of the balloon(womb) as you blow it up the dot will move further away from the opening(cervix), but won't move back down again until the balloon(womb) deflates(contracts after the birth.

Original poster

lumpylumps · 05/03/2012 20:50

Thanks Dlamis Makes perfect sense. I'll tell her. I knew MN would have the answer!

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shellywellybaby1 · 05/03/2012 22:02

Hey tell your friend not to worry. I had a friend in the same position and her placenta didnt move until she was 38+5 so she had resigned herself to the fact it would be a c-section. Good luck to ur friend!

Original poster

lumpylumps · 06/03/2012 09:07

Thanks shellywellybaby1 that was actually another question we were wondering about, if there is a certain point when they say if it hasn't moved it won't move!

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babybouncer · 06/03/2012 09:14

As I understand it, they mostly move up, but not always. Mine has moved the 'wrong' way and is now covering the exit route completely. This is what is great about getting scans - they can now monitor it and see what's going on and avoid risky deliveries where our parents' generation probably wouldn't have known anything until they went into labour.

bonbonpixie · 06/03/2012 10:07

Thank goodness for this thread - had my 30 week scan yesterday and was informed that now I have a low lying placenta! It seems it's been moving downwards. Also LO is 1/5th engaged already. Been frantically googling to see if this makes a difference to it moving up on its own. Has anyone experienced anything like this?
(sorry for hijacking!!)

Original poster

lumpylumps · 06/03/2012 20:13

Hijack away bonbonpixie I hope someone can answer!

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babybouncer · 07/03/2012 10:08

bonbonpixie I have no medical knowledge on this, but as I understand it, it is completely out of your control.

BagofHolly · 07/03/2012 10:54

My placenta was low-lying with DS1. I had loads of extra scans and in the meantime booked for a private c section as our insurance covered one if medically required. It was booked for 38+6 but I had a scants 36 weeks and the sonographer said it was 2.3cm from the os, and they like them to be 2.5cm but I was nearly there and therefore I wouldn't be "needing" a cs even though it was written in my notes "maternal request" as well as placenta previa. I was horrified - I wanted ELCS badly, and went crying off to my consultant. I tearfully said "the sonographer says the placenta has moved and now I don't need a cs!" He didn't even look up, and muttered "Did she?" with utter disinterest, and signed my cs booking. Not a man used to being argued with!
it was a v pleasant calm painfree experience and the placenta was HUGE and he commented that it was highly unlikely I'd have got the baby past it during a vb.

PoppyS34wantsgoatscheese · 15/03/2012 19:26

My 20wk scan showed a low lying placenta as well, the notes say at the moment isn't covering the os - i know this is probably a really silly question, but what does os mean? .

Am mildly concerned about possibly having a cs..

Catsycat · 15/03/2012 20:32

The "os" is the opening of your cervix. Not sure why some nurses mws call it an os, others just call it a cervix - confusing eh? Maybe a medical person will be along in a minute to explain....

BTW, when you go for scans to check the position of the placenta, you will need a full bladder, apparently. I had my growth/placenta scan the other week (at 27 weeks), and went to the loo first, as I thought I was so big they'd be able to see whatever they wanted. Apparently not. The sonographer was in a real snit about it too, until I pointed out I can't read minds, and no-one had told me that I'd need a full bladder for a scan at 6 months pg!!!

Catsycat · 15/03/2012 20:32

nurses and mws even...

FondleWithCare · 15/03/2012 20:55

bonbon if the head is engaged you're more than likely okay. They told me that the issue with a low-lying placenta is that sometimes the baby's head can't descend below the placenta. My baby never engaged, I was allowed to try for a vaginal birth with it 1cm from the cervix but her head never descended and my placenta tried to come out first so had EMCS which really wasn't too bad.

katiegolightly · 15/03/2012 21:38

Hi lumpylumps, your friend may well have had the next scan booked in when they told her about this - that's what they did for me (20w showed anterior placenta 11mm from the cervix). The scan they booked in is at 36 weeks. When I asked what would happen if the next scan showed it hadn't moved / hadn't moved enough, they said they would book in for a CS then and there for probably around the 37/38 week mark. Which I thought sounded quite early. I asked if they would be keen to do one more scan at the last minute to check for any change, they said no, very unlikely, they'd just get on with it! Hope your friend gets the answer she is after! Oh and FWIW I also heard that the vast majority move up and out the way but the only other person (my cousin) I know who has had this had hers move lower to cover the opening completely too, but that's purely anecdotal and not statistically significant!

Good question, Bonbonpixie... hadn't even thought if that may make a difference...

PoppyS34wantsgoatscheese · 15/03/2012 21:47

thanks for answering catsycat and for the tip, they didn't tell me that either!

bonbonpixie · 16/03/2012 01:17

Thank you so much for the info. I have my next scan in a couple of weeks so fingers crossed it will have moved out of the way by then. Although I am reassured that if not I will be given a CS. Would so much rather is was planned than trying to birth naturally only to be given an EMCS regardless.
Makes me giggle a little though that LO is using it as a bit of a pillow. A child that likes her/his creature comforts already......

capecath · 16/03/2012 07:39

I was told at my 20 week scan last time that the sonographer "couldn't find where my placenta was", which I later learnt meant it was probably low. Completely ignorant as to the significance of low lying at the time! I bled at 28 weeks, then again at 33 weeks and gave birth at that point. It was a VB, just lots of blood and early. My placenta started coming away, it seems that it didn't move. I didn't have placenta previa, just a low lying one. Now I am paranoid that it is going to happen again this time round... 18 weeks along and I am eagerly anticipating 20 week scan! Booked to see a consultant at 24 weeks (NHS) and also extra scan at 32 weeks due to last premmie birth.

As other people have said though, I do believe it is more normal for it to move up and out of the way after the 20wk scan, so hopefully no probs this time!

bebemoose · 17/03/2012 18:26

Hi Lumpy - I'm a sonographer. Diamis gave a perfect description of how a placenta appears to 'move'. It is for this reason that it can't move down again. bonbonpixie and babybouncer - I would suggest that if the placenta has apparently 'moved down' it was possibly not correctly located at your 20 week scan. This does sometimes happen if the view isnt good or baby's head is low down etc.

We use an internal scan to check how far the edge is from the cervix if we think it is low at 20 weeks. If it is we book again at 32 weeks, and again at 36 weeks if still low (less than 2cm from the internal os - which is the top part of the cervix inside the womb). We dont scan again after that - if still less than 2 cm from the os at 36 weeks a c section is booked, as it is very unlikely that it will move any further at that point.

And capecath I'm stunned by your sonographer saying they couldnt find your placenta! I have never been unable to find a placenta. They are quite large structures. Possibly if the placenta is underneath the baby and the mum has a very high BMI........ ? But 99.9% of the time the position should be visible. Hmmm..

Hope this helps!

capecath · 18/03/2012 18:34

Thanks bebemoose - very interesting. And my bmi is not high at all so that couldn't have been it :) Maybe it was underneath the baby hmm...

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