Conservative treatment in placenta accreta; report of a case in twin pregnancy.

THE abnormal adherence of all or part of the placenta to the uterine wall, so-called placenta accreta, is a complication in obstetric practice that calls for accurate, rapid diagnosis, and perhaps emergency treatment. It is not a common finding; Irving and Hertig1 record the incidence at the Boston Lying-in Hospital to be 1 in 1956 deliveries. The survey by Phaneuf2 reveals a frequency of 1 placenta accreta in 14,622 deliveries. There is only one previous report of placenta accreta occurring in twin pregnancies.3 The dangers of hemorrhage and sepsis in adherent placentas have made immediate hysterectomy the accepted treatment. However, . . .