Hypervascular retained products of conception: dilemma of diagnosis and management

Abstract

Retained products of conception (RPOC) are a partial retention of placental tissue after dilation and curettage (D&C) procedures or vaginal deliveries. Ultrasound scan reports sometimes mention the presence of increased endometrial / sub‐endometrial vascularity in the context of retained products of conception. This raises the possibility of serious intra‐operative haemorrhage because of the possibility of arterio‐venous malformation. The aim of this article is to discuss the diagnosis and management options of retained products of conception (RPOC) with increased vascularity where simple dilatation and curettage may lead to life threatening haemorrhage and endanger the life of the patient and to enlighten the importance of evaluation of vascularity in all cases of RPOC prior to dilatation and curettage in order to avoid the dreaded complication of massive haemorrhage.