Is it better to have a thick or thin placenta?

When a woman is pregnant for a certain period of time, the placenta will begin to appear in the uterus. As the pregnancy time gets longer, the placenta will play an irreplaceable role. The placenta is attached to the wall of the uterus and is tightly connected to the fetus. The placenta is the only channel for exchanging substances between mother and child, so the placenta is vital to the fetus. The thickness of the placenta will vary at different stages of pregnancy. So is it better for the placenta to be thick or thin?

Is it better to have a thick or thin placenta?

1. The thickness of a normal placenta is 2.5-3.8 cm, and the thickest should not exceed 5 cm. A placenta that is too thick or too thin is abnormal. As long as the placenta thickness is within the normal range, there is no need to worry. In the late pregnancy, the placenta grade should be checked regularly to ensure the normal development of the fetus.

2. The normal [full-term] placental thickness measured by B-ultrasound is 3.6-3.8 cm, usually not exceeding 5 cm. Under abnormal circumstances, the placenta may be enlarged. Conditions such as blood type incompatibility and diabetes can cause the placenta to be thicker than 5cm. Placental thickening generally indicates complications of the pregnant woman and some abnormalities in the growth of the fetus in the uterus. (The normal thickness of the placenta during pregnancy should be between 25 and 50 mm) The membranous placenta is characterized by a large and thin placenta, which is prone to bleeding in the second trimester of pregnancy. If the placenta is small, it can lead to intrauterine growth retardation of the fetus and low birth weight at full term.

3. The placenta is a transitional organ for the exchange of substances between mother and child during pregnancy in metatherian and eutherian mammals, formed by the combination of the embryo's embryonic membrane and the mother's endometrium. The fetus develops in the uterus and relies on the placenta to obtain nutrition from the mother, while both parties maintain a considerable degree of independence. The placenta also produces a variety of hormones to maintain pregnancy and is an important endocrine organ.

4. Some reptiles and fish also reproduce by giving birth to their offspring live. The embryo grows some auxiliary structures such as yolk sac and gill filaments, which are closely integrated with the maternal tissues to achieve the exchange of substances between mother and child. This structure is called a pseudoplacenta.

5. There are two independent circulatory systems in the placenta, one for the fetus and the other for the mother (even if it develops to the sinusoidal endothelial type, such as in the late rabbit embryo, there is still a layer of endothelial cells separating the two sides). The chorion can be regarded as a semipermeable membrane, and the area in which all the villi are in contact with the maternal blood is 7 to 14 square meters; when the maternal blood flows in the gaps between the villi and the fetal blood flows in the villi, substances can be exchanged.