Low lying placenta?

[mama to 2 girls]

Has anyone had a low lying placenta at their 18-20 week u/s and have every thing turn out ok....

The u/s tech did say it was a little low but she didn't think it was too low to be *too* concerned about it.

My m/w called me this evening to say everything looked great on the u/s but they want me to have a follow up at about 28 weeks. She said 99 times out of 100 it migrates up as the uterus grows...but now I am freaking out!

Is there anything I can do to help it along?

I am going to x-post in birth professionals too.

[so_blessed]

I had the same thing in my second pregnancy. They said exactly the same thing to me, and sure enough, on the next ultrasound, my placenta had migrated up and was in a good position. I went on to have a natural, uncomplicated birth! I wouldn't worry about it.

[madiesmommy]

I had a low lying front placenta with my first at the 20 week u/s. Sure enough, it migrated up as my uterus got bigger. Surely yours will too! I wouldn't worry at this point.

[quarteralien]

I think it's way to early to worry about placenta previa. Your mw is right, the vast majority of the time, it will not be an issue at all by delivery. Odds are hugely in your favor.

[sadiejane08]

When you get your followup u/s, ask them to look for vasa previa even if your placenta has moved up and out of the way. Vasa previa is when unprotected fetal blood vessels lie in the amniotic sac near or over the cervix. VP is highly correlated with low-lying placenta; as the placenta grows upward, the implantation point of the umbilical cord can shift so that it's no longer in the placenta itself but in the amniotic sac, leaving fetal blood vessels unprotected by either the placenta or the Wharton's jelly in the umbilical cord. (This can happen with an initial low-lying placenta because the placenta "moves" by growing on one side and dying off on the other side; if the umbilical cord was implanted near the edge where the placenta dies off, the blood vessels travelling out of it can end up exposed.)

Chances are you won't have it, but don't let them poo-poo you or say it isn't necessary or that they don't know what you're talking about. It's a dangerous complication--not during pregnancy, but during birth--that, if you know about it ahead of time, can almost always be avoided.

Don't mean to add more to your plate to worry about, but it's easy to check for and easy to "solve" if they do find it.

[sunnymw]

I don't even plan on asking at my 20w ultrasound because so MANY women seem to have "placenta previa" at that point... I know the signs to look for in the 3rd trimester that point to PP..

In my old OB's office, if you had a low lying placenta, they would not do another u/s until 32 or 34 weeks to give it more time to move. If it was still low lying they would schedule a c/s, but before the c/s they would do another u/s to make sure it was still there. If it wasn't, c/s was cancelled. Of course around here some mamas still opted for the c/s since they'd by then planned their entire schedule around it, and some would go for induction (at 38 weeks!)

I wouldn't worry about it

[kamesennin]

.

[Linzie2]

Had my US today, and the tech mentioned it was low-normal. I wonder if my MW will suggest a follow up?

[quarteralien]

Originally Posted by pbandj

What are some signs that point to PP in the 3rd trimester? This happened to me last time and it moved out of the way by the time I went for a follow-up in the 3rd tri. This time insurance is not paying for the 20 week (that's ok, don't want it anyway) so I want to be ready with info for my midwife if she insists I get it anyway. Hah as if I have an extra $900 lying around on the floor here...

I'm pretty sure unexplained painless bleeding is the main one, as the cervix starts dilating and separating from the placenta. And then an u/s would be done to confirm.

[sadiejane08]

Originally Posted by quarteralien

I'm pretty sure unexplained painless bleeding is the main one, as the cervix starts dilating and separating from the placenta. And then an u/s would be done to confirm.

If you do have unexplained painless bleeding (painless is key here), have them check immediately to see whether it's your blood or the baby's blood. Painless bleeding also occurs with vasa previa, not just placenta previa. VP is a much more serious condition than PP, so it's best to know beforehand (via u/s) if that's what you're dealing with. But any time you have painless bleeding, they should test whose blood it is, before a u/s or CTG or anything like that; if it's the baby's blood, you don't have any time to lose.

[worcma]

Twin A, the closest to my cervix, had a low-lying placenta at the 18 wk u/s. My MW said that they couldn't know how low without a vaginal u/s. So it could be low bad or low but still ok for a vaginal birth at this point. They could tell it definitely wasn't a full previa.

I'm so not worried about it at this point. A bit of research showed that the vast majority move. With twins, I'm scheduled for several more u/s's so we'll know soon enough.

[Ilaria]

At my 16 w U/S my placenta completely covered the OS, by last week (18w3d) it had moved and was 2cm away from it. My sonographer seemed pretty sure it would continue moving up.

[quarteralien]

Also, if you do have placenta previa, no pelvic exams. The last thing you want is for someone to mess around with your cervix with a delicately-attached placenta just on the other side. That would cause even more bleeding.