Written by Editorial Team
Giving birth is undoubtedly a miraculous process. An amazing organ is known as the placenta nurtures your baby in the womb throughout your pregnancy. The placenta provides all the nutrients and oxygen to your baby and once the baby is delivered, the role of the placenta also finishes. The placenta is then expelled during the third stage of labor. But it does not always come out easily resulting in retained placenta.
Retained placenta refers to the condition in which the placenta fails to fully expel from the uterus subsequent to the delivery of the infant.
In certain cases, a fragment of the placenta may remain in the uterine cavity. Although infrequent, the condition can have significant implications. Postpartum complications may arise several days or weeks following delivery. The retention of the placenta has the potential to result in significant maternal morbidity, including but not limited to life-threatening hemorrhage or severe infection.
In This Article
Typically labor happens in three stages:
Occasionally, the delivery of the placenta may exceed the anticipated timeframe. If the whole or a part placenta or membranes remain inside your womb for more than 30 minutes after your baby is born, then it is known as the retained placenta. If the retained placenta is left untreated, it can cause complications that can be life-threatening.
A placenta normally gets retained due to three main causes which include:
When you have a retained placenta in your body, you will experience the symptoms of it after a day. Some of the main signs and symptoms of retained placenta include:
The main factors that can increase the risk of a pregnant woman having a retained placenta include:
If you have any of the above risk factors, then your doctor will be able to guide and assist you as to how to manage the third stage of labor.
In order to diagnose retained placenta, your doctor can carefully examine the expelled placenta to ensure that it is still intact. Any missing part is a cause for concern. In cases where the doctor was unable to diagnose a small part of the missing placenta, then the woman will start to experience the symptoms mentioned above after delivery.
If your doctor suspects retained placenta, then he will perform an ultrasound scan to check whether any part of the placenta is remaining in your womb. If this is the case, then immediate action is required to avert further complications.
Suppose the expulsion of the placenta is taking time after giving birth, breastfeeding your baby or rubbing the nipples is a good move as this will release oxytocin hormones. This triggers uterine contractions that will in turn help in expelling the placenta.
In a managed third stage of labor, if the placenta does not come out within an hour of delivery, the doctor will administer an oxytocin injection that will stimulate the contraction of the uterus. The doctor will assist in the expulsion of the placenta. However, if this does not happen, another dose of oxytocin injection along with saline is administered into the umbilical vein to help in placenta expulsion.
If the retained placenta has not come out even after the doctor has administered oxytocin and saline injections, then the doctor will do any one of the following:
In a normal delivery, the contraction of the uterus occurs in order to stop any bleeding. However, if a part of the placenta is retained inside the uterus, it is unable to contract properly causing blood vessels to bleed continuously. Your uterus will not be able to properly close and thus prevent any blood loss.
You cannot do much to prevent the retained placenta from occurring in the next pregnancy.
Have you or anyone in your family faced the problem of retained placenta? Do let us know about your experience in the comments section below.
A retained placenta occurs when all or part of the placenta remains in the uterus for more than 30 minutes following delivery. An untreated retained placenta poses serious risks to the mother’s health.
It is crucial to take measures to remove the retained placenta after delivery instead of waiting for it to expel naturally. Failure to do so may result in fatality for the mother.
Yes. In the event that a retained placenta is suspected, the physician will conduct a physical examination as well as an ultrasound examination.
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