Placenta accreta is currently the most common indication for peripartum hysterectomy. It occurs when the placenta invades and attaches abnormally to the myometrium. The risk and incidence of placenta accreta has increased significantly in recent decades due to rising cesarean delivery rates. Prenatal diagnosis using ultrasound and MRI is important to identify high-risk women and allow planning with a multidisciplinary team. Optimal management involves scheduled cesarean hysterectomy between 34-35 weeks gestation. Conservative management can be considered but is associated with higher risks of hemorrhage, infection and need for emergency hysterectomy.

1. The Most Common Indication
For Peripartum
Hysterectomy
Professor Galal Lotfi. MD, MRCOG.
Ostetrics & Gynecology Department.
Suez Canal University
Ismailia. Egypt.

2. • In the past, the most common indication was atonic
and traumatic post partum haemorrhage.
• Not anymore

3. Now we have Accrete

4. Placenta accreta is currently the most common indication for peripartum
hysterectomy.
Placenta accreta occurs when the chorionic villi invade the myometrium abnormally.
Three grades:
Placenta accreta: The chorionic villi are in contact with the myometrium,
Placenta increta: There the chorionic villi invade the myometrium,
Placenta percreta: The chorionic villi penetrate the uterine serosa [1]
NOW

5. • Accreta
• Morbidly adherent placenta.
• Abnormal adherence of placenta.
We Call it
Different names for
the same
catastrophic
diagnosis

6. Nothing is worse surprise
for the obstetrician
Why?

7. Placenta accreta:
Massive and potentially life-threatening intrapartum and
postpartum hemorrhage[2].
Leading cause of emergency hysterectomy [3].
Maternal morbidity up to 60%
Maternal mortality up to 7%.
Perinatal complications is mainly due to preterm birth
and small for gestational age fetuses.
Why it is the worst obstetric
complication?
So, nothing is
worse in your
speciality?

8. Incidence: 0.5-1%
Earlier text books considered it rare complication, but not anymore due to the increasing rate of
cesarean delivery over the past 50 years [8]. And will continue to expand.
Wu et al [10]. reported an incidence of 1 : 533 births for the period from 1982 to 2002, much
greater than previous reports ranging from 1 : 4027 to 1 : 2510 births in the 1970s to1980s,
[10].
1 : 1000 deliveries with a reported range from 0.04% rising up to 0.9% [10, 11, 22]
Most commonly occurs in women who have placenta previa and have had a cesarean delivery.
Risk in women who have placenta previa increases from about 10% if they have had one
cesarean delivery to > 60% if they have had > 4 cesarean deliveries.
That is
huge!!!!

9. The incidence of accrete has increased mainly and solely
because of the soaring increase of CS rate.
Why is that??
• CS on request
• 100% CS for ART pregnancies.
• Increased intrapartum fetal monitoring
• Advanced age of pregnant women
• Loss of Obstetric Art:
• Breech Delivery??
• Instrumental delivery??
• Trial of CS Scar??
• Lack of patience of the patient and the obstetrician??
• Weak doctor patient relationship and Litigation.
• Abuse of US:
• Cord around the neck??
• Decreased amniotic fluid??
• Placental calcifications???

12. Egypt rate. Verbal communication
45% general
85% private

15. Risk for accreta
Risk increase when you have:
• Previous cesarean deliveries.
• Myoma, submucous and Myomectomy
• Previous curettage, ZEALOUS.
• Endometrial ablation.
• Asherman’s syndrome,
• Advanced maternal age,
• Grandmultiparity,
• Smoking,
• Chronic hypertension [14].
• Prior placenta accreta is probably a major risk factor.
• Alanis et al. reviewed 72 cases of placenta accreta that were treated
conservatively. Among 15% of women who had a subsequent pregnancy,
18% developed a repeated placenta accreta [25],.
Almost Always Iatrogenic

16. In the past. Emergency hysterectomy was mainly for
postpartum hemorrhage either atonic or traumatic.
With increasing rates of CS that indication was on the
decline.
However that same cause just changed the reason for
doing emergency hysterectomy but in a graver and
more dire situation.

17. Diagnosis
.
If you can't prevent its occurrence try to prevent its complications.

18. Diagnosis cont...
First of all suspect it and put in mind if you have low placentation or
even lower position of first early gestation sac especially in the
presence of Uterine scar.
Prenatal diagnosis is very crucial if you want to avoid mortality and
facing bleeding from everywhere.

19. Diagnosis cont...
First trimester US.
Signs of accretion may be seen as early as in the first trimester.
Low-lying gestational sacs which are clearly attached to the uterine
scar.
The myometrium was thin in the area of the scar to which the sac
was attached compared to normal early gestational sacs

20. Preg 9w. Decidua basalis is hypoechoic region behind
placenta.
Normal
Situation

21. Tvs. Gestational da implanted in LUS. Progressed later to
percreta.

22. Tvs. LUS implantation. Multiple irregular vascular spaces
in and around placenta (circles)

23. Gestational sac implanted in CS scar at int Os level

24. Diagnosis cont...
Second and third trimester US:
Loss of continuity of the uterine wall,
Multiple vascular lacunae (irregular vascular spaces) within placenta,
giving “Swiss cheese” appearance adjacent to the placental
implantation site,
Lack of a hypoechoic border (myometrial zone) between the
placenta and the myometrium,
Bulging of the placental/myometrial site into the bladder,

25. TAS. 18w. Color Doppler. Placenta accreta. Multiple
vascular lacunae.

26. TAS. A: normal placenta with normal hypoechoic retroplacental zone.
B: accreta with absent retroplacental zone and multiple lacunae.

27. TAS. Accreta. Multiple lacunae.

28. A. TVS grey scale accreta. Multiple lacunae. B; color
Doppler extensive vascularity and lacunae.

29. TVS. A: grey scale. B: color Doppler. accreta. Abnormal uterine serosa
bladder interface line. Abnormal vascularity of posterior wall of the bladder

30. Diagnosis cont...
Doppler sonography.
Increased vasculature evident
on color Doppler.

31. Diagnosis cont...
3D ultrasound.
The observation of “numerous coherent vessels” detected by three-
dimensional power Doppler in the basal view were the best single
criterion for the diagnosis of placenta accreta, with a sensitivity of 97%
and a specificity of 92%.
3D power Doppler-may be useful as a complementary technique for
the antenatal diagnosis or exclusion of placenta accreta [33]

32. US findings

33. Diagnosis cont...
MRI
If the ultrasound findings are not considered definitive, or the placenta is located
on the posterior wall, MRI could help.
MRI findings considered suspicious for the presence of placenta accreta:
Placental heterogeneity,
Mass effect of the placenta into the underlying bladder or extending laterally
or posteriorly beyond the normal uterine contour,
Obliteration of the myometrial zone visible on initial uptake of gadolinium,
Beading nodularity within the placenta [34].
Bladder,
placenta
impinging

34. Diagnosis cont...
AFP, hCG
Elevated levels of alpha fetoprotein and human chorionic gonadotropin within the
triple screening test have been reported to be associated with an increased risk of
placenta accreta.
Though the mechanism is unclear, abnormality of the placental-uterine interface
that may lead to leakage into the maternal circulation-may explain this increase
[35, 36].

35. Diagnosis tip
At this time no antenatal diagnostic technique affords the clinician 100%
assurance of either ruling in or ruling out the presence of placenta accreta.
The definitive diagnosis of placenta accreta is usually made postpartum on
hysterectomy specimens when an area of accretion shows chorionic villi in
direct contact with the myometrium and absence of decidua [26,37]

36. Management

37. Management
What should I do!!!
• Elective. Elective. Elective Cesarean hysterectomy with multidisciplinary team .
• There is a great benefit of planned as opposed to emergent peripartum
hysterectomy. In mothers with placenta previa and a suspected accreta who required
peripartum.
• hysterectomy, (scheduled) delivery has been associated with shorter operative
times and lower frequency of transfusions, complications, and intensive care unit
admissions [39]

38. Increta

39. Increta

40. Increta

42. Increta

43. The multidisciplinary team
The multidisciplinary team should include.
• Gynecologic surgeon experienced in pelvic surgery,
• Blood bank team prepared to administer multiple blood components,
• Experienced anesthesiology personnel who are skilled in obstetric anesthesia,
• Urologists in case a bladder resection or repair might be required,
• Experienced intensivists for postpartum care,
• Experienced neonatologist.
• In cases where pelvic artery catheterizations are used, an experienced interventional radiologist.
Eller et al. showed that delivery at a medical center with a multidisciplinary care team resulted in a
more than 50% risk reduction for composite early morbidity among all cases of placenta accreta and a
nearly 80% risk reduction among those cases wherein accreta was suspected before delivery

44. Timing of operation
Time of operation. 34-35w
O’Brien et al. reported that after 35 weeks, 93% of patients with placenta
accreta experience hemorrhage necessitating delivery [5].
Warshak et al. reported that planned delivery at 34 to 35 weeks of gestation
in a cohort of 99 cases of accreta did not significantly increase neonatal
morbidity[9].
So don't wait more than 34-35w.
Don't try to avoid prematurity at the expense of facing emergency placenta
accreta with bleeding in the middle of the night with no precautions.
If mother life on stake, don't think much about prematurity.

45. Don't worry about me. Take care of mom.

46. Type of anesthesia
Type of anesthesia.
Controversial. The American Society of Anesthesiologists task force on obstetric anesthesia
suggested that general anesthesia may be the most appropriate. Extensive pelvic invasion
and/or significant potential or intraoperative bleeding still favors general anesthesia [41].
Insertion of large-bore venous access to allow rapid crystalloid and blood product
infusion,
Availability of high flow rate infusion and suction devices,
Hemodynamic monitoring capabilities (central venous and peripheral arterial access),
Compression stockings and devices to prevent thromboembolism,
Padding and positioning to prevent nerve compression, and
Avoidance and treatment of hypothermia [31].

47. My case, when patient makes her decision
Referred at 20w
did not like the option Hysterectomy
Did not like the option 34w termination
showed up at 36weeks with bleeding
and contractions

48. Bladder care
Bladder care.
Placenta accreta is most likely to affect the urinary bladder [23]. Placenta accreta
that invades the urinary bladder may cause urinary fistula, and bladder laceration
requiring partial or total cystectomy [23].
Data suggest that preoperative ureteric stent placement may help reduce the risk of
ureteric injury.
Moreover, cystoscopic placement of ureteric stents can usually be accomplished
quickly and easily even in an emergency and is associated with relatively minimal
risk [43].
If bladder involvement is suspected, cystotomy may be needed to clarify the extent
of invasion after devascularization of the uterus is achieved and to ensure ureteric
patency if stents were initially not inserted.

49. Optimal management
The optimal management.
Hysterectomy immediately after delivery of the baby without attempts
at placental removal had been reported to lower mortality and morbidity
rates compared to conservative management especially in cases of
placenta percreta.
This procedure became, and still is, since 1972, the recommended
treatment option [18, 19, 44].

50. Optimal management
Supra-cervical hysterectomy. It requires less operative time and is
associated with less bleeding.
Proceed with cesarean hysterectomy while keeping the placenta
attached.
On occasions however, a supra-cervical hysterectomy may not
control bleeding and a complete hysterectomy is needed

51. Bleeding is not always
surgical. Medical
bleeding' DIC
No stitches needed

52. Conservative management.
If you have to!!!
Conservative management
If to preserve the uterus or hysterectomy is a hazardous choice:
Conservative management, which includes delivery by a cesarean section without
hysterectomy, The primary idea of conservative management is to leave the entire placenta
or just the part that is adherent to the myometrium in situ and to preserve the uterus.
Manual removal of densely adherent placental areas should not be tried because forceful
separation may result in severe bleeding [20, 45].
Kayem et al. compared maternal outcomes among women with a placenta accreta, within
two consecutive periods: period A, the placenta was removed manually leaving the uterine
cavity empty; period B, the placenta was left in situ. During period B, there was a significant
reduction in the hysterectomy rate, the mean number of red blood cells transfused, and in
the incidence of disseminated intravascular coagulation compared with period A [46].

53. Conservative complications
Postoperative complications reported with a conservative approach include:
• Severe postpartum hemorrhage,
• Postoperative disseminated intravascular coagulopathy, and
• Infection resistant to antimicrobial therapy that may require
• Laparotomy and hysterectomy [17, 21, 47,

54. Conservative cont..
The conservative approach should be done if the risk of the hysterectomy is
deemed higher than conservative management, especially where resources
such as blood replacement or expert pelvic surgery is limited.

55. Conservative cont..
The use of compression sutures,
such as the B-Lynch suture may
be helpful in tamponading
bleeding and has been used in
cases of placenta accreta (36).
The physicians caring for
pregnancies with placenta
accreta should familiarize
themselves with these
compression sutures prior to the
cesarean delivery

56. Lynch

57. Methotrexate or no
methotrexate
Methotrexate or not. Uncertain
The role of adjuvant methotrexate in cases of conservative management is
uncertain. No large studies have compared methotrexate with no
methotrexate in the treatment of placenta accreta, and at the present time,
there are no convincing data for or against the use of Methotrexate in
cases of placenta accreta [21].

58. Uterine cooling
Uterine Cooling Reduces
Bleeding in Cesareans, 2015

59. Intravascular
Recently, inserting intravascular balloon catheter for occlusion and/or arterial
embolization of the pelvic arteries was introduced as an invasive adjuvant
therapy in order to minimize blood loss during cesarean hysterectomy.
In selective cases the placement of a balloon catheter wasdone concurrently
with conservative management with the intent of avoiding hysterectomy,
thereby preserving fertility [51].
Failure of intravascular balloon catheters to reduce blood loss may be
explained by the extensive degree of uterine blood flow with pregnancy and
the extensive vascular anastomoses present in the gravid pelvis. In addition,
whereas reduction of blood flow to the uterine arteries likely occurs following
balloon inflation in the hypogastric arteries, collateral circulation from
cervical,ovarian, rectal, femoral, lumbar, and sacral arteries likely contribute to
the overall blood loss. Inflation of the balloons immediately following delivery of
the infant may actually
exacerbate collateral blood flow [57].

60. Arnold