# Question about anterior placenta



## MomInCalifornia (Jul 17, 2003)

I had an ultrasound today (20 weeks) and I have an anterior placenta, which I had sort of expected, as I can feel movements, but not like I did with my first pregnancy. Anyway, the wonderful news is it is not covering my cervix at all, so she saw no reason it would be a problem in that area.

Is there anything else I need to know about this? I am having a homebirth, and will ask my MW at my appt in 2 weeks.

Is it possile for the placenta to move over my cervix, or once it is in place, does it stay put?


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## Artisan (Aug 24, 2002)

I think an anterior placenta is perfectly normal -- my first was this way. And yes, a placenta can move, but it's quite unlikely that it will move to cover your cervix.


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## MommytoTwo (Jun 20, 2004)

I have an anterior placenta and other than feeling movement later than normal I have had no issues with it. Also sometimes early on it can be hard to find a heartbeat but youre past that point by now. Anterior placentas can make baby want to position itself posterior, so I recommend you pay lots of attention to your posture during your last few months. Check out www.spinningbabies.com


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## stafl (Jul 1, 2002)

My placenta was anterior, too. The only issue was that if it got too close to the scar from my cesarean, so we had an extra u/s at around 30 weeks just to make sure it wasn't a problem. Midwife told me it was a good thing, but I can't remember why?
placentas have a tendency to move upwards as baby gets bigger, you shouldn't worry about it too much.


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## wombat (Nov 3, 2002)

Mine was anterior and my baby was posterior. I never felt hard kicking or anything.

No one mentioned anything to me about problems related to the anterior position of the placenta and I didn't have any problems. Although baby being OP and me being in a hospital ended up with a c/s.

The anterior placenta seemed to make those fetal monitor belts rather useless. In hospital, I'd been told I only had to be monitored every 20mins. but the anterior placenta made it hard to monitor so stupid nurse kept telling me, oh no we have to start again every time my 20mins was up.


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## BeHereNow (Aug 18, 2004)

I had an anterior placenta with ds2 and experienced the same thing in regards to movement (it took me a long time to feel it and it was more subtle, plus heartbeat was harder to find). Actually, we 'assumed' it was anterior (no US) because of the things I mentioned and the posterior positioning.

I have also read that a baby tends to want to face the placenta. This could explain why posterior babies often have anterior placentas. My ds2 was posterior up until my last prenatal (I went 42 weeks, which also seems to sometimes be related to posterior babes/anterior placenta). Not sure when he turned. Labor was VERY short but VERY intense (and painful).

So, I would consider doing the optimal fetal positioning exercises (like the ones at spinningbabies). I don't think an anterior plancenta means baby will definitely be posterior, but it increases the odds. But, I also kept reminding myself a posterior baby doesn't always = difficult labor.


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## Kaitnbugsmom (Dec 4, 2003)

bumping for further thoughts/experience, as we found out our babe's placenta is anterior at our U/S yesterday and since I had a c-section with my last baby, I'm worried I won't be able to VBAC this one...


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## Patchfire (Dec 11, 2001)

Dd's placenta was anterior. We had no problems with positioning or labor. This baby's placenta is also anterior. The baby's been ROA instead of LOA, but no other oddities of positioning. I did feel movement a little later than expected with this one, and it was later in both pregnancies before I felt consistent, day-to-day movement.

The main problem I've had? It's harder to find the hb with just a fetascope. We really wanted to avoid all Doppler use, but at 28 weeks, the midwife felt that she would be more comfortable if she could get enough of a hb to get a rate on it, and the only way to do that at that point was with the Doppler. She had heard it briefly at 20 weeks, and not at all at 24. We still couldn't pick it up at 32 weeks with the fetascope! Last three appointments (34, 36, 37), we've gotten it nicely, but obviously that's quite late in the game!

Re: placenta near the cervix, with dd, we had an u/s at 18 weeks, and it was 'close' to the cervix. They had us do a follow-up (this was a hospital birth with CNMs, not the homebirth midwife we have this time) at 36 weeks and it was far, far away from the cervix. This time, no u/s, but no problems either.


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## Henry's_Mamma (Jan 23, 2004)

I had an anterior placenta and a posterior baby and I never felt a lot of strong movement. I usually felt movement low or to the sides but never on my abdomen. Almost everyone I know with an anterior placenta ended up with a posterior baby as babies do like to face their placentas. I wish I'd known about the spinningbabies site pre-birth (I also had a c/s). Oh, and mine was lowish to begin with and never creeped up substantially, so it was of some concern towards the end but never created a problem. And the heartbeat was difficult to find sometimes and the monitors were troublesome for the nurses (baby is that much farther away from the monitor due to the placenta and the heartbeat, which is heard more easily through the back, is difficult to find b/c baby is face up).


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## Full Heart (Apr 27, 2004)

All 5 of mine had anterior placentas and I carried all 5 posterior. But they turn in labor. Twice I had placenta covering my cervix that moved during the pg so it wasn't a problem. Well actually only twice that I know about since I only had us in 2 pgs. The other times my midwife foulnd my placenta by listening with the fetoscope. Bacially outlining where my placenta was based on what she heard.

Michelle


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## Kaitnbugsmom (Dec 4, 2003)

Thank you all so much







This was our first visit with our new Ob {there is a huge rant in August 2005 about why we switched} and one of the first things that endeared her to us was she was as worried as we were as to why we couldn't hear the hb and hadn't at the last three visits with the other OB. {who was totally unconcerned despite my history of m/c} She immediately went for the sonosite and did an external ultrasound, immediately finding the anterior placenta [which scarily enough, my former ob and her nurse, with a combined thirty some years in the field had said was my bladder]

So it is possible to deliver vaginally? ! ? !!!! Yes!







:happydance: I had pitocin-induced and controlled back labor with dd #1, with just tylenol to take the edge off the headache so I could focus, so I'm sure I can do this


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