Fetal death due to an unknown or unexplained cause is a common pregnancy complication, more frequently seen in women in developing countries. The rate of fetal death increases after >38 weeks of gestation. A recent study has found that placental aging is associated with fetal death. Placental aging has been proposed as one of the causes of fetal death or stillbirth in the late-term (>41 weeks).
A supporting study in this regard reported that the telomere length in placentas associated with stillbirth is reduced. Other studies have shown that fetal growth restriction is also associated with telomere shortening and stillbirth. The current study was based on the hypothesis that placentas from women who delivered >41 weeks completed or had stillbirth exhibited biochemical evidence of aging. Placenta from women at 37-39 weeks gestation (early-term and term), late-term and with unexplained…
