Low Lying Placenta/Placenta Praevia concerns

[Becks1978]

Hi all, Im new here and looking for info/experiences/reassurance!

I am 15 + 3 weeks pregnant after a miscarriage last summer at 10 weeks and a no. of bleeding complications afterwards.

I had some spotting on Good Friday and went to hospital who 1. Did speculum and said I have an erosion on my cervix and nothing to worry about (anyone heard of this/had this?)

1. Had a scan, baby great but got an anterior low lying placenta, currently placenta praevia grade 4 (completely covering cervix).

Am freaking out about placenta thing cos of course googled it and read such horrific stories about haemorrhaging, intensive care, women nearly dying etc that I can hardly sleep at night!!! I also read there is a high chance it will move in later pregnancy but is this still the case if its completely covering os?

Anyone know anything about all this? Your comments will be totally appreciated

Thanks and hope you are all ok,
Becks1978

I'm 25 weeks and have placenta praevia. This is my 3 rd pg, and I also had it with DS1.

With DS1 I did have some slight bleeding around 15 weeks, and my 20 week scan showed the placenta blocking the exit! They booked me for a scan at 32 weeks, by which time it had moved and I had a normal delivery.

This time the placenta is more overlying, so has further to move. I have a scan booked for 34 weeks.

There is nothing you can do to help, but the vast majority of placentas move as the womb expands.

I guess they will take a proper look at your 20 week scan, then book you in for another scan closer to your due date.

If it is still in the way you will be advised a c section. All those terrible scary things are generally a result of attempting a vaginal birth (ie because the pp was undetected.)

Cervical erosion just means the cervix is a little soft and crumbly, so bleeds slightly. It ofetn happens as a result of pg hormones. It is only blood from the surface cells of the cervix, not from inside.

i had low lying placenta in 2 of my 4 pregnacies, my was anterior too, which meant whenever I had a poo I would bleed a litte, both times it moved up by 34 weeeks and I was able to birth completely naturally. The horror stories are rare and are about placenta praevia, right now you have a low lying placenta, which is quite commmon and will move most likely.

I know of a lady who lost her baby a couple of years ago to Placenta Praevia, however it wasn't found until after the fact.

She said that 95% of known Placenta Praevia cases are dealt with sucessfully.

I had low lying placenta with my second pregnancy, had to keep being scanned. It wasn't completely covering, only partially. They gave me the choice in the end as to whether I wanted natural birth so I went for it and all was fine, no haemorraging.

Try not to worry too much, as it will probably move.

I had placenta praevia with ds2, found at 17 weeks after a huge, sudden, terrifying painless bleed. I had another bleed around 20 weeks, at which point t was grade 4, and in such an unusual poition that consultant said he was pretty certain it wouldn't 'move'. By 28 weeks it was out of the way, and ds2 arrived at 40 + 8 vaginally after a quick labour.

Hi there,

The horror stories are usually because the pp has been undetected so women have attempted to labour.

The majority of placentas move in time (as the uterus expands upwards so the placenta is stretched away from the cervix) so a natural delivery is possible. The good thing is you will now get extra scans to check its progress (always nice to see your baby!). You are at risk of bleeding and you will need to go to hospital if this happens as they always need to check things so a good tip might be to have a small little bag to hand that you can quickly grab. Enough for (possibly) a night in hospital - I had a basic wash kit (toothbrush, paste, etc. in sample sizes, a nightdress and cardigan and flip flops and my hospital notes. And a book).

I had partial praevia with my twin pregnancy and recurrant bleeds. It was detected at my 20 week scan and partially covering my cervix. I had bleeds from 23 weeks onwards. By 28 weeks it had moved away from my cervix but probably due to the multiple pregnancy I continued to bleed and had an emergency c-section at 35 weeks. I was told that because of the extra risk with twins (more risk of bleeding) they wouldn't allow me to attempt a vaginal birth but I know of a friend with a singleton who had placenta praevia and had a brilliant, natural delivery. Equally, another friend with twins had grade 4 praevia that never moved and although she had a caesarean because of this she never had any bleeds.

As for the cervical erosion, this is really common and is just the shedding of cells from the cervix. It can be hormone related which is why it is quite common during pregnancy (the cervix becomes softer and more likely to bleed).

Kx

Another thing you'll want checked, especially if the placenta does move is vasa previa. This is when foetal bloodvessels are right over the cervix. Two of the warning signs are painless bleeding and low lying placenta. To detect it properly you need to get the consultant to use a colour doppler. I don't want to scare you, but this is one of those things that if diagnosed you will have a healthy baby, if not, then the risk of death at birth is extremely high. I myself had undiagnosed vasa previa with my dd who is a miracle survivor.

The chances of having vasa previa are not at all high, but it's worth making sure they check for it. For more information go to www.vasaprevia.org

Hi Becks,
I had placenta previa which was spotted at my 20 week scan, so i was booked in for another scan at 34 weeks to check it's position. The sonographer said cheerfully "oh they usually move, don't worry!" but just my luck mine stayed stubbornly where it was. The first bleed i had was at 32 weeks,it was a sudden heavy, painless loss and I spent 2 days in hospital. Started bleeding again at 35 weeks, went into hospital and stayed put - i live about 1/2 an hour away from the hospital and that was considered too far away in case of another bad bleed - until dd was delivered by c-section at 37 weeks after another couple of fairly minor bleeds. Very well organised delivery, no problems. Not all placenta previa cases cause bleeding and usually the placenta will move - if it doesn't you'll be closely monitored. So i know it's easy for me to say but - don't worry! I'm sure the majority of the scare stories you've read would have involved an undiagnosed placenta previa causing problems during labour.