What does placenta grade zero mean?

The placenta will appear after pregnancy, because the placenta is a necessary condition for the growth and development of the fetus. All the nutrients needed by the fetus are absorbed from the placenta. Medically, the placenta has its own grades during its development period, with a total of four grades, starting from grade zero to grade three. Level 3 means the baby is almost born. So what does the initial zero-stage placenta mean?

What does placental maturity grade 0 mean?

Grade 0 means the placenta is not yet mature. After pregnancy, as the gestational weeks increase, the placenta will also change from new to old, which is called placental maturity. In medicine, four grades are usually used to determine the level of placental maturity. Grade 0 indicates that the placenta is not yet mature, which is normal and usually occurs in the second trimester, around 12-28 weeks of pregnancy.

The placenta function is divided into 3 levels. Level 1 is the best and can provide good nutrition to the baby. Level 2 placenta begins to age, but it will not affect fetal absorption. Level 3 placenta means that the baby is about to be delivered.

Generally, the placenta reaches level 1 maturity between 30 and 32 weeks of gestation.

In the early stages of pregnancy, the biggest concern clinically is that the function of the placenta will age as the time passes. In other words, the longer the time passes, the greater the possibility of placental aging. If the placenta ages, it will not provide enough nutrients and oxygen to the fetus, which may cause fetal hypoxia. If the fetus is deprived of oxygen, it is likely to die in the womb or develop brain damage after birth.

Generally speaking, after 36 weeks of pregnancy, the placenta reaches level 2 maturity, indicating that the placenta has begun to mature. However, the placenta can mature prematurely. If a grade 3 placenta is found before 37 weeks and combined with the value of the biparietal diameter and the estimated fetal weight of 2500 grams, precocious placenta should be considered and the possibility of intrauterine growth retardation of the fetus should be alerted.

The more mature the placenta is, the better it is. It is good to have a corresponding placental maturity according to the pregnant stage of the woman, because the placenta is the key to supplying nutrition to the fetus. A prematurely mature placenta means that the placenta ages quickly, which can easily lead to insufficient oxygen supply to the fetus and even cause delayed growth and development of the fetus. By the end of pregnancy, the placenta is basically mature.

What does placental maturity grade 3 mean?

At 38 weeks of pregnancy, the placenta enters grade 3, indicating that the placenta is mature. When the placenta reaches level 3 maturity, it should be checked at any time to prevent placental aging and danger to the fetus.

In late pregnancy, the function of the placenta decreases as the fetus matures. The aging of the placenta means that the function of the placenta is significantly reduced, which may affect the development of the fetus. If the fetus is mature, early delivery is required.

The so-called placental aging refers to the decline and reduction of the function of the placenta, which results in fetal hypoxia, malnutrition, developmental delay and fetal distress, and even stillbirth, stillbirth, neonatal asphyxia, etc. The long-term consequence is fetal brain cell necrosis and poor development, and ultimately leads to mentally retarded children.

Placental aging is actually not a very scientific issue, because the placenta, like the baby, has a process of occurrence, growth, development, and maturity. Many people think that it is aged when it reaches stage 3. In fact, after 35 weeks, stage 3 only guarantees its maturity, not its aging. The function of the placenta is based on many examinations, such as the amount of amniotic fluid, the fetal heart rate monitoring, and some biochemical tests, which can also tell whether the placenta is functioning well.