N126

PLACENTA - Velamentous insertion of umbilical cord

Description
The specimen is a normal-sized placenta with attached umbilical cord. The umbilical vessels are intensely convoluted and varicose. They ramify and anastomose to form a single umbilical cord which contains three vessels. Occasional infarcts are seen on the maternal surface of the placenta.
History
The patient, a primagravid, was delivered of a healthy female at 40 weeks gestation. The pregnancy had been complicated by a retroverted incarcerated uterus at 14 weeks which was corrected under general anaesthesia.