anybody know about retained placenta.

[starynight]

Hi just wonderd if there's any reason why this happens?
And is it likley to happen again?

First pregnancy placenta came out fine second pregnancy ended in a late m/c 19wks with twins and placenta got stuck so ended up being put to sleep for removal. We were told it was probably due to going into labour too soon then I had my dd full term and same thing happened again.

I'm not pregnant but me and dp having been talking.g about maybe trying for are third and final baby. I no I've got a long way to go before I need to think about this but its something that's always bugged me?

Were you given syntometrine? (By this I mean did you deliver your placenta naturally or did the mw give you an injection and pull on the umbilical cord to remove the placenta?)

The reason I ask is because the drug syntometrine makes your uterus contract really quickly and if they are not quick enough pulling the placenta out, some can be retrained as the uterus is contracting.

Just a thought!

Most likely cause is the injection they give you once the baby is out. They don't always ask permission and probably did it so you didn't have to then spend up to an hour waiting for the placenta to be delivered after what must have been a traumatic enough experience.

Oh I see you've had a baby since. Even still, the injection is usually the cause.

So sorry about your loss though.

I had a 'retained products' (placenta) with my first - it was a VERY long labour and my uterus was totally exhausted and not really doing much after about 36 hours - it all took 48 hours - I did get a ventous in the end and I did have the injection to get the placenta out, but I remember the doctor saying it was 'a bit raggy' at the time. Then a week later I had the mother of all headaches and then started bleeding heavily the next day, non-stop. The day after I went to hospital and they did a scan and a swab and found placenta remaining. I was lucky tho as they inserted tablets to get my uterus to contract and then sent me home with heavy duty anti-biotics. With my susequent deliveries I was always asking them, 'how's the placenta??'. I don't know why it happened, but I put it down to an exhausted uterus! The other two placentas came away absolutely fine and I had no probs. I guess what I'm trying to say in a long-winded way is that it only happened once out of three. (My second was v long too and my third was super quick!). So you never know you could be fine.

I think tho if it is something that you raise with the MW's and drs that they will be prepared for it. Sorry too, for your loss. good luck with trying for a third.

Hi firstly sorry for your loss how awful

I have retained placenta with my 2nd and have been told by my consultant to have the injection then be put on a drip after baby is born to continue contractions. Not much looking forward to that but after a relatively easy 2nd labour I had MROP with spinal block which was awful.

I have heard it's due to prematurity too as placenta not ready to come out. That works in 3/4 of our family cases- me born at 36 wks, my nephew at 31 wks and my dd2 11 days early. All retained placenta.

Though my mum had it with both of us, I only had it with dd2 and my sister had two more after my nephew without.

Sorry for your loss OP.

I had retained placenta on dd1. She was a few days early and it was a very quick first labour - about 4.5 hours from first twinge to delivery.

When dd was born I was told to expect more contractions to expel the placenta but I felt nothing. Not sure if I had the injection or not but waited for ages breastfeeding dd to see if it would help but nothing happened.

In the end I had to go to theatre for manual removal under anaesthetic.

I was disappointed as had an easy, drug free birth.

On dd2 I had another quick labour. Arrived in hospital just in time to deliver dd2. No time for any discussion.

When midwife said the placenta had delivered I said 'great, I had problems with that last time'

She was a bit taken aback. Apparently I should have mentioned it because there is a strong chance of reoccurence.

I seem to lose interest after baby pops out because I honestly have no idea if I had the injection either time.

Hi thank you all for your replys sorry I've taken so long to write back had both kids down with a bug. Yes I was given the injection straight after birth so I think if we go ahead with trying I will disscuss not having injection.

Docs or mw have never asked about it even though its happens twice Its the doctor coming in and messing around down there trying to pull it out with just gas and air that freaked me out a bit just thinking about this part makes me want to throw up.

Is it right that your ment to have it removed within a hour was told this by a friend and just wonderd why I was waiting 4hours to go to theatre?

I think some women have a tendancy to problems like this. (zilch medical knowledge to back this up, though). With my first, the doctor told me that the placenta hadn't come out intact. He told me that he would try and get it out manually (and told me, in the nicest possible way that if he didn't, I'd end up in surgery having it extracted that way).

with my second, the doctor insisted that all the placenta had come out but i bled heavily for 3-4 weeks. eventually, a huge 'clot' came out (sorry, TMI) and i stopped bleeding.

I think you need to talk about your worries with a doctor so that you have a clear idea about what would likely/possibly happen in future.

Hi,

Sorry for your loss

I (and another friend) had a totally different experience to everyone else who's replied.

I went 8 days overdue (she was overdue too). I had a natural, drug free birth (so did she). I opted to NOT have the injection to expel the placenta after not having drugs (why have them then). It was taking it's time to come out (and I was getting worried) so I then decided to have the injection.

I was at a birthing centre so after more time elapsed, I was rushed in an ambulance half an hour away to the hospital to go into theatre to have my placenta removed. It was removed the same way him came out.

I was then given a spinal block, anti sickness drugs, low blood pressure drugs, iron tablets and anti biotics. So much for my drug free birth!

I did think about going to the docs and asking about it but I have one of them docs that sort of looks down at you and talks to you like your daft when I take the kids.

Didn't no if I would sound silly going in to ask about placentas well I don't feel silly wanting to ask he just makes me feel silly if you no what I mean. My dd was poorly at Xmas and he'd only speak to me on the phone he told me I was worrying to much then we ended up at emergancy docs as I was right all along dd. was starting to dehydrate he just makes me feel so angry and have no trust in him.

Sorry for your loss.

I would imagine the retention of the placenta in your third pregnancy was not related to the retention when you lost your son.

The fact that following your first labour the placenta came away suggests that the fact that it didn't with the third was "just one of those things".

With premature deliveries it is extremely common for the placenta not to be delivered. I lost my son at 22 weeks and we were warned that it was very unlikely that the placenta would deliver naturally and it didn't.

Sorry for your loss.

I would imagine the retention of the placenta in your third pregnancy was not related to the retention when you lost your twins.

The fact that following your first labour the placenta came away suggests that the fact that it didn't with the third was "just one of those things".

With premature deliveries it is extremely common for the placenta not to be delivered. I lost my son at 22 weeks and we were warned that it was very unlikely that the placenta would deliver naturally and it didn't.

So sorry pressed post and realised I had written "when you lost your son" was thinking of my own. I did of course mean your twins.

That's ok Nancydrew I didn't no that was the case with premature deliveries was never told anything when I lost the twins it all seemed a bit hush hush I got the feeling there was something going on but would not tell me other than the loss was due to infection

So it seems that theres a possibility that it happening twice might not have been connected and could just of been a coincidence or at least I hope so lol

I don't really fancy experiancing that again was the oddest thing ever. Sorry for your loss too

I have a rubbish phone that decided to post before id finished Grr!

So sorry for what you've been through.

My first birth was also - like suiledonne - a drug-free experience in a birthing centre, until the point where the placenta refused to come along. Also a quick birth, but there were no contractions for the placenta at all. And I also had to be loaded in to the ambulance for it to be removed under anaesthetic in hospital (which I hated so much that I buggered off with man and baby at 2am after the requisite four hours recovery time).

But it worked fine with the second birth - mw gave me the injection and gave it a good pull (which was nearly as painful as the birth) and it came out intact, thank goodness.

I have confirmed endometriosis and the mw and my gyno thought the placenta was possibly being held back by adhesions around the womb, but they weren't sure.

Best of luck if you go for it again.

I'm sorry to hear of your loss

I had a retained placenta after having DD, I had to have an op under GA to remove it as nothing they tried would get it to budge!

I was told that once you've had a retained placenta, you have more chance of it happening with subsequent births and because of this I wasn't able to give birth to my second child at the local MW led unit, I had to go to the bigger hospital in the next town. My delivery with DS was fantastic though, no problems whatsoever and the placenta came out beautifully (I had the injection to help it)

I guess I'm trying to say try not to worry too much about it. It played on my mind a lot when pregnant with DS, and I really didn't want to be whizzed off to theatre straight after having him like I was with DD, but as I say, it was all fine.

starynight, i'm sorry you don't feel comfortable discussing it with your GP.
I've just found this info:

www.babycentre.co.uk/pregnancy/labourandbirth/labourcomplications/retainedplacenta/

best of luck.

Ahh thanks poutine. And thanks everyone for sharing your storys.

I had retainted placenta after a miscarriage, and then after birth of DS2. I gave birth at 9pm and then didn't get out of Theatre until 3 am as it took them so long to manually remove it. lost loads of blood and was severely anaemic, and THEN a couple of months later (and a couple of infections later) ended up with another D&C to remove more placenta. Mine was apparently "morbidly adherent" - i.e. it had actually grown into the walls of the uterus. Chances of it happening again are around 50/50 so I'm told - more so if the placenta is in the same place (which mine currently is). I have opted for an elective C-section this time as I couldn't bear to go through the whole manual removal again, especially after the exhaustion of a long labour - it was truly horrific as I was awake throughout and all I remember was the registrar going on about how I was losing too much blood and that he couldn't get the placenta out, and how he might have to consider a hysterectomy...truly hideous ....however, having said that, my obstetrician) (who is very anti - c-section would have been happier for me to "take my chances" with a vaginal delivery and "hope" it didn't happen again.