Placental detachment: symptoms and treatment
Premature placenta detachment is a rare complication during pregnancy. It can usually appear after the 20th week of pregnancy. You can find out here which symptoms indicate a placenta detachment and how it is treated.
Symptoms of placenta detachment
Premature placenta detachment has various symptoms. The placenta can come off completely or only partially. One consequence of this is that, in the worst case, the unborn child is no longer adequately supplied with oxygen and nutrients.
Symptoms depend on the amount of blood loss and the degree of detachment:
- Bleeding often occurs unexpectedly.
- Severe abdominal pain can also indicate a detachment.
- A circulatory shock is possible. This can be recognized by a particularly low blood pressure.
- The lower abdomen is already sensitive to pressure when touched gently.
- If you have these symptoms, seek medical advice immediately so as not to endanger your life or that of your child.
An ultrasound examination can quickly determine whether the placenta is premature.
Risk factors for placenta detachment
Although the exact causes are not known to this day, there are some risk factors that favor detachment:
- Alcohol, tobacco and cocaine use
- high blood pressure
- Blood vessel diseases such as vasculitis
- blood clotting disorders
- too much amniotic fluid
- premature rupture of membranes
- late labor
Treatment of a placenta detachment
Your doctor can use an ultrasound scan to determine whether your placenta has separated and then decide on further treatment.
- In less severe cases, like partial detachment of placenta, you’ll be put on bed rest. In this case, you should refrain from sexual intercourse until the birth.
- Corticosteroids are often prescribed to help the child’s lungs mature.
- If the bleeding doesn’t stop, you’re usually referred to the hospital. Mother and child are monitored there around the clock so that they can intervene immediately in an emergency.
- If the bleeding becomes heavier, the baby’s heart sounds weaker, or if the pregnancy is at least 37 weeks old , doctors will decide to induce labor. In cases where a natural birth is not possible, a caesarean section is used.