My name is Jennie. I'm a wife and a mother. I have been married to the man of my dreams, Trever, for 9 wonderful years. We have 5 beautiful daughters who fill our lives with joy and excitement. We just had our 6th child. Our son Caleb.

I was diagnosed with a rare condition called Placenta Accreta along with Placenta Previa. Accreta is a condition where the placenta attaches to the scar tissue in the uterus. It will often continue to grow to deeper tissue (increta) and even through the uterus attaching to other organs(percreta). I ended up having an 11 hour surgery, including a hystorectomy, and bladder repair. I received 7 units of blood and blood parts. (This is a lot of blood loss for my surgeons, but minimal blood loss to those who are not as experienced in these deliveries. I spent 36 hours in the ICU after surgery. I have also had many other complications afterwards including another minor surgery 2 weeks later. These complications are somewhat normal for the type of surgery I had.

I had a team of specialists doing my surgery. Obgyns, Gyno-oncologists, trauma surgeons, urologists and anesthesiologists. This team has specialized in techniques helping with minimal blood loss. Those with accreta , loose large amounts of blood because the placenta cannot detach naturally at delivery.

My goal is to help save women's lives by giving this terrible condition a voice. So many are ignorant to its fatal attack. Doctors and women alike, need to be educated about Accreta. Many have never even heard of it. The numbers are on the rise because of so many women choosing to have c-sections when it isn't necessary. Not all women can avoid it, but many can. Please help me give Accreta a voice, by sharing the information in this blog. (There are numerous posts with information on Accreta as well as the Accreta team who took such great care of me.)

Saturday, March 16, 2013

What exactly is placenta accreta??? (part 2 of 2)

The next drawing is an example of placenta increta.  Increta is much like accreta.  However, the placenta continues to dig through the scar tissue attempting to establish a normal placental blood barrier.  In placenta increta, the placenta never actually passes the perimetrium.  Similar to accreta, severe hemorrhaging can occur once the placenta separates from the tissue.

Placenta Increta

The last and most severe form of placental growth is placenta percreta.  Percreta is where the placental actually grows through all layers of the uterus and into the internal body cavity.  Since the placental is still growing to establish a healthy placental blood barrier, the placenta will grow into any blood rich organ it comes in contact with.  In many cases, the placenta will invade the bladder or intestines etc.  Not only is percreta dangerous because of the severe hemorrhaging that can occur in the uterus, but because of the additional damage that occurs to the other organs.
Placenta Percreta

Though the internet shows a bleak outlook for ANY form of accreta, there are many things that can be done to give the mother a better chance.


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2 comments:

  1. AnonymousJuly 7, 2013 at 2:01 PM

    I'm not sure when you wrote this but this is what I am going through at the moment. I had to hace a c-section due to shape of my uterus and a breech baby. I am almost 12 weeks now and basically just waiting for whatever to happen. I have also taking to tell people never have an elective c-section, its not worth it. I wish you the best and am going to continue to spread the word, and try to be positive about my pregnancy..thank you for this!

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    Replies
    1. Jennie PlastowJuly 7, 2013 at 4:21 PM

      Thanks so much for your reply! Good luck with this pregnancy

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