Morphological Study of the Placenta; A Reflection of Intrauterine Life of the Foetus.

ABSTRACT

Background: Placenta is a vigorous, energetic, resourceful organ which in most cases of placental insufficiency is showing compensatory changes in response to an unfavourable maternal milieu, (H Fox 1975).The present study is an attempt to find out the morphological and histopathological changes in the placentas of hypertensive patients. Methods: The study was conducted on 60 cases of pregnant women admitted and delivered in the department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Subharti Medical College Meerut. The patients were divided into two groups. Control group included cases with normal blood pressure and study group included cases having blood pressure more than 140/90 mmHg. Placentas of each group were kept in separate container filled with 10% formalin solution for at least one week. At the onset of examination, placental size, thickness & weight is recorded. Results: The result reveals the mean placental area ± SD in placenta of control group was 240.5 ± 51.7% and in study groups was 206.3 ± 67.4% (p<0.05). The mean placental thickness ± SD in the control group was 2.3 ± 0.4% and in the study group was 2.8 ± 0.6% (p<0.001). The mean placental weight ± SD in the control group was 390.3 ± 49.0% and in the study group was 346.7 ± 97.4% (p<0.05). Conclusion: Placenta is a mirror which reflects the intrauterine status of the fetus. The examination of the placenta gives a clear idea of what had happened with it, when it was in the mother’s womb and what is going to happen with the fetus in the future.