Molar pregnancy meaning | what is molar pregnancy? | molar pregnancy

 Molar pregnancy: symptoms, causes, types,effects, diagnosis and treatment.

In a healthy  pregnancy sperm fertilize with egg and make an embryo and a placenta from the uterus tissue which provides all essential nutrients to the fetus to develop a healthy pregnancy.

Molar pregnancy is a condition in which uterus tissues which develops into placenta becomes abnormal and develops into a tumor or mole. It is non cancerous tumor. This tissue form a cyst, cyst is a sac filled with fluid. Molar pregnancy also called gestational trophoblastic disease(GTD) or hydatidiform mole. Cells and tissues which cause tumor is called trophoblast. There is every year more than 1 million cases of molar pregnancy in India are seen.

There are two types of molar pregnancies complete molar pregnancy and partial molar pregnancy

Complete molar pregnancy: 

Complete molar pregnancy is in which no embryo is and placenta formed. Placental tissue form a cyst. This tissue have chromosomes from father and lost chromosomes from monther. Father's chromosomes duplicate itself  and form 46 chromosomes.  This complete molar pregnancy has a chance of cancerous tumor in future. 

Partial molar pregnancy:

Partial molar pregnancy is in which embryo is formed and placental tissue form a mole rather than placenta. Due to absence of placenta development of fetus effects and pregnancy can not survive.  In this embryo two sperm fertilize with egg and has two pairs of chromosome set from father and one from mother. Total 69 chromosomes are present  in this. 

Symptoms of molar pregnancy: 

Molar pregnancy has no specific symptoms in the first trimester . Later molar pregnancy have the  following symptoms:

• Woman with molar pregnancy feel nausea and vomiting. 
• Pregnant women feel pain in the abdomen in molar pregnancy. 
• Women notice dark brown and bright red colour bleeding in the first trimester. 
• In molar pregnancy pregnant woman face fast heart rate.
• High blood pressure problem also seen in molar pregnancy. 
• Anemia is also a symptom of molar pregnancy. 
• Woman with molar pregnancy feel pelvic pain.

Causes of molar pregnancy:

Risk factors of molar pregnancy are:

• If a woman had a miscarriage then she may have a chance of molar pregnancy.
• Molar pregnancy in the past is also a reason for future molar pregnancy. 
• Age of a pregnant woman is less than 20 and greater than 35. 
• Infertility problem may also cause molar pregnancy. 

 Effects of molar pregnancy:

Molar pregnancy may lead to a loss of the pregnancy. Molar pregnancy can cause cancerous tissue in the uterus or in the abdomen. 

Molar pregnancy can cause partial gestational lymphoblastic disease in which tissue are spreading after treatment.  

Molar pregnancy may cause choriocarcinoma a cancer disease.  

In future chances of molar pregnancy increases if you had molar pregnancy .

 Diagnosis of molar pregnancy: 

If your doctor notice any symptom of molar pregnancy then he\she advice you to test HCG. In molar pregnancy HCG level increases as compare to normal pregnancy.

To confirm the molar pregnancy ultrasound test may advice to the pregnant woman. 

Treatment of molar pregnancy:

After diagnosis of molar pregnancy doctor talk to you about molar pregnancy recommend D&C I.e dilation and curettage to remove the tumor or cyst tissues. And after D&C doctor tells you to check up HCG level in every 1 to 2 months till 6 months or 1 year. 

Through D&C tumor tissues was removed but after removing tissue if it spreading more in the uterus or in the abdomen GTD chemotherapy was advised to the patient. 

If tumor becomes dangerous or cancerous then to stop spreading of cancerous tissue in all over the body uterus was removed by surgery called hysterectomy.

Also read about Ectopic pregnancy