Grade 3 placenta previa

hi everyone..,...

after having a 16w scan 2 days ago it has shown that i have a grade 3 placenta previa.

it did show at my 12w scan as well but at the time it was a good thing due to other issues in my pregnancy.



My OB was a little worried as it hadnt buged at all in that 4 weeks, but has said it definatly has time to move.

Id like to hear from anyone who has had the same or similar thing and what happened...
did it move in time??
did it stay put??

many thanks in advcance!

Hi Crumpet, I've only got grade 2 (I think?) so not exactly the same (at 20 weeks mine was 1.5cm away from the cervix - so not actually covering at all), but in my own posting & searching, i have heard of others with a grade 3 that moved away. I've also heard of some being checked (but not sure how severe) and at 32 weeks they were still too close/covering but by 37 weeks had moved. So I'm thinking that the thing in your favour is that you've got lots of time for it to move.

Don't know if that's much help but I hope it moves for you

thanks for ur reply hun....

im hoping that time is in my favor and it does move, but who knows what games pregnancy will throw at me this time!

Hi Crumpet, I had pp with DD, it was close but not covering the cervix. Is your's covering the cervix at all or partially? Mine was classified as Grade 2 (from memory), less than 2cm away from the cervix.

I had f/up scans at 32 weeks and 37 weeks. Unfortunately my ob said I was the first patient he's seen in private practice where it hadn't grown out of the way, but there you have it. So it is more common with close placentas to 'move' away as the placenta and uterus grow. In my case I stayed pretty small and my DD was only 2.56kgs at term, so I think part of our problem was that there wasn't enough growing!

BTW it caused me no problems at all during my pg. I had a c/s at 39 weeks with no complications.

I believe pp that is covering the cervix completely is less likely to move. I had a belly/baby buddy who had this and was hospitalised in her third trimester after two bleeding episodes. She delivered a healthy baby boy by c/s at 38 weeks.

its covering my cervix but not totally....
about 1/3 of my cervix is covered at this stage.

wow im really hopeful it moves after reading about ur OB.....

obviously being only 17 weeks we have got time for it to move so hopefully it comes to the party and is one less thing to worry about!!!

thanks for ur reply its good to know some ppl with PP dont have any issues with it

Hey Crumpet, I'm stalking (cos was just having a little read of your high risk thread ) and I saw you'd mentioned is there anything else you can't do with PP. Obviously you'll check with your obs anyway, but FYI I was told by my obs if ANY bleeding to contact him ASAP, but otherwise nothing to avoid. (TMI warning) Tbh, DH and I have avoided DTD as I had so much bleeding and issues last PG (some following DTD) that the poor fella was petrified and is very nervous of causing any issues - so it's been a mutual decision to avoid the risk of that kinda stress this time around. If I were you, I would double check if that's something you should or shouldn't do (then again, I don't know if your other issues preclude that anyway), plus it might be different cos your cervix is partially covered. Ah i'll stop waffling now, but I have fingers crossed for you but agree, it's heartening to hear of other stories that ended well. Also given your PG I imagine thay'll be monitoring your little bundle very closely anyway which is good. I'm cheering for you all the way!!

Hey Crumpet, I'm stalking (cos was just having a little read of your high risk thread ) and I saw you'd mentioned is there anything else you can't do with PP. Obviously you'll check with your obs anyway, but FYI I was told by my obs if ANY bleeding to contact him ASAP, but otherwise nothing to avoid. (TMI warning) Tbh, DH and I have avoided DTD as I had so much bleeding and issues last PG (some following DTD) that the poor fella was petrified and is very nervous of causing any issues - so it's been a mutual decision to avoid the risk of that kinda stress this time around. If I were you, I would double check if that's something you should or shouldn't do (then again, I don't know if your other issues preclude that anyway), plus it might be different cos your cervix is partially covered. Ah i'll stop waffling now, but I have fingers crossed for you but agree, it's heartening to hear of other stories that ended well. Also given your PG I imagine thay'll be monitoring your little bundle very closely anyway which is good. I'm cheering for you all the way!!

thanks for stalking hun, any info is grately appreciated!
i stupidly didnt ask my questions at my appt becasue i was more worried about my cervical stitch and the report from that, and went ou yeah low lying placenta thats fine grade 3 sweet..... stupid me!

we cant do to hoirzontal limbo anyway from the stitch so DH has been with out for a looooooong time, well since BFP days! poor man i feel for him ,but hey we all have to make sacrifces!!

ok ill keep my eyes well peeled for any signs of bleeding!!

thank you.... the support on BB is amazing!

we are being closely monitored woth lots of US, only perk to a high risk pregnancy ive discovered!

Isn't that the most annoying feeling? You come out and realise all the questions you wish you'd asked! And yes I wondered that with the stitch... ah the things we give up hey I'm sure my DH would be sending your DH comiserations on the dry spell . The funny thing with ours is that we conceived right at New Year... so technically he's got "nuthin'" since last year!

I now have a funny feeling that I read somewhere to avoid heavy lifting.. yeah just had a google and it said to avoid strenuous activity, heavy lifting, using tampons (!?!?!? ) etc. All things I imagine you're already doing anyway! I reckon my obs said don't avoid anything cos mine's only grade 2... but I'm not prepared to risk anything, plus have SPD which counts me out of the lifting/strenuous activity bit anyway.

And yes, at least there's a silver lining with the extra monitoring!

Isn't that the most annoying feeling? You come out and realise all the questions you wish you'd asked! And yes I wondered that with the stitch... ah the things we give up hey I'm sure my DH would be sending your DH comiserations on the dry spell . The funny thing with ours is that we conceived right at New Year... so technically he's got "nuthin'" since last year!

I now have a funny feeling that I read somewhere to avoid heavy lifting.. yeah just had a google and it said to avoid strenuous activity, heavy lifting, using tampons (!?!?!? ) etc. All things I imagine you're already doing anyway! I reckon my obs said don't avoid anything cos mine's only grade 2... but I'm not prepared to risk anything, plus have SPD which counts me out of the lifting/strenuous activity bit anyway.

And yes, at least there's a silver lining with the extra monitoring!

i was spewing when i got home and realised i didnt actually ask anything!!!

ur poor DH, bet he gets a few laughs when he tells his mates he hasnt action since last year!!!

yep no lifting and keeping the couch warm isnt to strenuous thank god!! it looks like its the same restrictions as my stitch so thats not to bad im used to that!!

hi crumpet

i had a grade 4 previa with my pg with DS. the good thing with a grade 3 and you being only 17 weeks pg, the placenta has a good chance of moving upwards and away. i had to contact my ob if i had any bleeding at all and was told not to venture too far from a hospital just in case. in fact his exact words were "dont go trekking across the simpson desert anytime soon" lol. i am a nurse in an emergency department and i still went about my daily work routine as per usual. they will check your placenta again at your morphology scan, and if its still near, they will check it again at 32 weeks then again around 37 weeks. fingers crossed it moves for you!! xx

hiya crumpet - I've got an update for you. After being told at 26 weeks it was still low, we delayed my scan a bit (was gonna be 32 weeks) and I had it today. My placenta is now 6.5cm from the cervix and no longer in the way of bub's head. I have fingers crossed that yours will move too

Hi Crumpet - my sis had grade 3 PP, and at her 36 wk scan her placenta had moved! It was only 2.5cms away from the cervix, so she was told she could choose whether or not to have the c/s.
She was going to go for a vaginal birth, but when she went into labour she had a bleed so ended up with a c/s anyway. But - there is hope for you that your placenta will move!
All the best

My mum had grade 3 with my sister, it had moved at 39 weeks.

I have it now, edge of placenta covering the cervix completely, but I think it'll move. My midwife is completely confident that it will move, so I'm rolling with that.

Hey You

OMG you poor thing - like you haven't had enough issues regarding pregnancy

I had Grade 4 during my pregnancy with Carmelo - mine was quite severe, though, completely covering & I was told it was extremely unlikely it wouldn't move.

I was also told with grade 4 that I would more than likely bleed throughout the pregnancy (and quite early on)... although I was lucky in the fact that I only had 2 bleeds (one at 32 weeks and one at 35 weeks).
My OB said I was the only patient he had that had had grade 4 and not bled by 28 weeks.

It was no drama really for me in terms of anything going wrong - I had the bleed at 32 weeks (you may remember my first hospital visit in the belly buddies thread?) and was hospitalised for a week, and then bedrest for a 2nd week... then I was allowed home but bled again 6 days later & then put in again for another week of bedrest before Carmelo was born via c section at 36 weeks.

I think it depends on your individual situation (Ie if they take bubs early etc) and I do remember the midwife saying that most cases of PP have a good chance of moving except for grade 4.
Curiously enough, though, after the first bleed I had at 32 weeks (it was a big bleed) - my placenta moved slightly... but nowhere near enough to be out of the way

My OB was very insistent on no sexy time AT ALL (even to the point of no orgasms for you) and no heavy lifting or exercise bar casual walking & pottering around the house.
He told me to make someone else carry the groceries in from the car - or if I had to do it, only one bag at a time

Feel free to ask me anything you need

hi crumpet

i had a grade 4 previa with my pg with DS. the good thing with a grade 3 and you being only 17 weeks pg, the placenta has a good chance of moving upwards and away. i had to contact my ob if i had any bleeding at all and was told not to venture too far from a hospital just in case. in fact his exact words were "dont go trekking across the simpson desert anytime soon" lol. i am a nurse in an emergency department and i still went about my daily work routine as per usual. they will check your placenta again at your morphology scan, and if its still near, they will check it again at 32 weeks then again around 37 weeks. fingers crossed it moves for you!! xx

i definatly wont be doing a desert treck thats for sure!!
thank you, im hopefuly after reading so many stories of them moving!

hiya crumpet - I've got an update for you. After being told at 26 weeks it was still low, we delayed my scan a bit (was gonna be 32 weeks) and I had it today. My placenta is now 6.5cm from the cervix and no longer in the way of bub's head. I have fingers crossed that yours will move too

thats great news belfie!! so happy for u!!

Hi Crumpet - my sis had grade 3 PP, and at her 36 wk scan her placenta had moved! It was only 2.5cms away from the cervix, so she was told she could choose whether or not to have the c/s.
She was going to go for a vaginal birth, but when she went into labour she had a bleed so ended up with a c/s anyway. But - there is hope for you that your placenta will move!
All the best

thanks for sharing, stories like that give me hope it will move nicely!!

My mum had grade 3 with my sister, it had moved at 39 weeks.

I have it now, edge of placenta covering the cervix completely, but I think it'll move. My midwife is completely confident that it will move, so I'm rolling with that.

im only covering about 1/3 of the cervix so hopefully thats a good sign!!

Hey You

OMG you poor thing - like you haven't had enough issues regarding pregnancy

I had Grade 4 during my pregnancy with Carmelo - mine was quite severe, though, completely covering & I was told it was extremely unlikely it wouldn't move.

I was also told with grade 4 that I would more than likely bleed throughout the pregnancy (and quite early on)... although I was lucky in the fact that I only had 2 bleeds (one at 32 weeks and one at 35 weeks).
My OB said I was the only patient he had that had had grade 4 and not bled by 28 weeks.

It was no drama really for me in terms of anything going wrong - I had the bleed at 32 weeks (you may remember my first hospital visit in the belly buddies thread?) and was hospitalised for a week, and then bedrest for a 2nd week... then I was allowed home but bled again 6 days later & then put in again for another week of bedrest before Carmelo was born via c section at 36 weeks.

I think it depends on your individual situation (Ie if they take bubs early etc) and I do remember the midwife saying that most cases of PP have a good chance of moving except for grade 4.
Curiously enough, though, after the first bleed I had at 32 weeks (it was a big bleed) - my placenta moved slightly... but nowhere near enough to be out of the way

My OB was very insistent on no sexy time AT ALL (even to the point of no orgasms for you) and no heavy lifting or exercise bar casual walking & pottering around the house.
He told me to make someone else carry the groceries in from the car - or if I had to do it, only one bag at a time

Feel free to ask me anything you need

oh why hello!!!

u know i totally forgot u had the PP and then as soon as u posted i remembered, blame it on baby brain!

i havnt had any bleeding at all, well only from when i had my stitch done which we knew would happen, but nothing else.... im definatly on the look out, coz the OB wants me to call straight away if there is any bleeding because it could be from either the placenta OR the stitch like u say as if i havnt had enough dramas!! lol.... can just imagine it now, i go in with bleeding and they cantfigure out which issue is causing it!!!

i have my 20w scan on thursday so ill be houding the US tech to find out where its at, im hoping it moves coz if my OB says we have to do a CS then im up for xmas in hospital not a big deal but id rather be home!!

ill keep u posted!! and might i just say master C is such a spunk i admire his pics on FB!!!

Hey Crumpet, my stepmum had PP with her last 3 pregnancies.

The first one was my stepsister (now almost 17!) which also included the loss of a twin between 7 and 10wks... they told her to have a D&C as they couldn't find the baby on an u/s and the placenta was partially covering the cervix. She refused, and ended up having my stepsister 28 weeks later by C-Section lol

The next one was either a grade 3 or grade 4, I forget exactly it was almost 5 years ago now, but my stepmum had lots of bleeding, especially after a fall in the bath around 16wks that made part of the placenta come away from the uterine wall. She couldnt drive without starting to bleed - something to do with moving her feet/legs to use the break ad accelerator pedals I think. She was ok for short tris as a passenger though.
She also started bleeding t random times for no reason. She was told no driving, no heavy lifting, no other strenuous activities, bed rest for most of the second half of the pregnancy etc, basically the same as wha the others said. My little sister was born via c-sec between 37 and 38 wks.

With her third pregnancy my stepmum was a grade 3, it only covered part of her cervix and my little brother was born via c-sec at 38wks. She had bleeding for most of the pregnancy again as part of the placenta seperated from the uterine wall again, but that was probably due to another fall in the bath.

My stepmum also had the issue of a threatening uterine prolapse (prolapsed uterus?), and was told if she didn't get pregnant with my little sister when she did her uterus would prolapse and she'd have to have a hysterectomy. My little brother was also conceived less than 2 months after my little sister was born as well, so the 2 pregnancies very close together may also have contributed to her PP the third time round. In both those last 2 pregnancies the placenta did move away a bit though, with my little sister it moved 2cm, and with my brother it moved 1.5cm, and though she could have gone for a vaginal birth, she didn't want to risk it or go through the pain of it as she had a bad birth experience with her eldest, my stepbrother (now 22).

Just thought I'd add this just in case it helps a bit

Hopefully the placenta moves away enough that you CAN have the birth you want

thanks for sharing hun!!

considering it was covering 1/3 of my cervix, its now moved a bit so its not covering at all, but its still to close apparently...

hopefully it will budge before the next scan at around 26 weeks and then by the 32 week one it should be well clear!!

Crumpet, if it's already cleared the cervix it sounds like it's well on its way out of the way. GL!