Placenta previa is an obstetric complication in which the placenta is inserted partially or wholly in the lower uterine segment. Placenta previa may cause serious morbidity and mortality to both the fetus and the mother because of the inherent risk of hemorrhage. This article describes the effective approach to the management of placenta previa. Placenta previa is an obstetric complication that classically presents as painless vaginal bleeding in the third trimester secondary to an abnormal placentation near or covering the internal cervical orifice (os).
Placenta previa complicates approximately 0.5% of all pregnancies. It often leads to preterm delivery, with 44% of pregnancies with placenta previa delivered before 37 weeks. Previously there have been three defined types of placenta previa: complete, partial (a portion of the cervix is covered by the placenta), and marginal. More…
