Placental lake
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At the time the article was created Yuranga Weerakkody had no recorded disclosures.
View Yuranga Weerakkody's current disclosuresAt the time the article was last revised Arlene Campos had no financial relationships to ineligible companies to disclose.
View Arlene Campos's current disclosures- Placental venous lakes
- Placental lakes
- Placental venous lake
Placental (venous) lakes refer to a phenomenon of formation of hypoechoic cystic spaces centrally within the placenta. Finding placental lakes during a second trimester ultrasound scan is not associated with any uteroplacental complication or with an adverse pregnancy outcome. They can, however, be abnormal if very diffuse or if seen very early in pregnancy.
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Epidemiology
Placental lakes are a common occurrence, reported to occur in approximately 20% of pregnancies.
Associations
Their presence tends to be associated with:
placenta accreta spectrum and abnormal placental villous adherence
placental insufficiency, especially if seen early in pregnancy 5
Pathology
They usually result from perivillous fibrin deposition with cystic change within areas of subchorionic fibrin.
Markers
the presence of placental lakes is associated with increased maternal serum alpha-fetoprotein (MSAFP) levels
Radiographic features
Ultrasound
relatively well defined hypoechoic regions within the placenta
color Doppler imaging may show low-velocity intraplacental laminar flow
Differential diagnosis
placental chorioangioma: shows marked internal vascularity on color Doppler imaging
Quiz questions
References
- 1. Thompson M, Vines S, Aquilina J, Wathen N, Harrington K. Are Placental Lakes of Any Clinical Significance? Placenta. 2002;23(8-9):685-90. doi:10.1053/plac.2002.0837
- 2. Reis N, Brizot M, Schultz R, Nomura R, Zugaib M. Placental Lakes on Sonographic Examination: Correlation with Obstetric Outcome and Pathologic Findings. J Clin Ultrasound. 2005;33(2):67-71. doi:10.1002/jcu.20086
- 3. Elsayes K, Trout A, Friedkin A et al. Imaging of the Placenta: A Multimodality Pictorial Review. Radiographics. 2009;29(5):1371-91. doi:10.1148/rg.295085242
- 4. William T. O'Brien. Top 3 Differentials in Radiology. (2010) ISBN: 9781604062267 - Google Books
- 5. Jauniaux E & Nicolaides K. Placental Lakes, Absent Umbilical Artery Diastolic Flow and Poor Fetal Growth in Early Pregnancy. Ultrasound in Obstet & Gyne. 1996;7(2):141-4. doi:10.1046/j.1469-0705.1996.07020141.x - Pubmed
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