Measure the Placenta: Measure, Identify, Prevent

Abnormal placenta size is a risk factor for stillbirth and
other adverse pregnancy outcomes.

Measure. Track. Prevent.

Measure the Placenta at Every Ultrasound

The placenta is a temporary organ that forms in the uterus during pregnancy. Like roots of a tree, it supplies baby’s critical needs.

The Placenta attaches to the uterine wall and provides nutrients and oxygen to the baby through the umbilical cord.

A baby can outgrow its placenta. Like a car driving with no gas gauge, a pregnancy loss can occur without warning. There is not always reduced movement or warning signs. These losses can be sudden, unexpected, and too often go unexplained.

Read the research

prenatal ultrasound — Standard prenatal ultrasounds typically measure the placenta’s location in the uterus and cord insertion. Placenta size and health are not a part of standard prenatal care.

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Half of stillbirths result from conditions affecting the placenta.
Based on current stillbirth rates, measuring the placenta could potentially prevent thousands of stillbirths each year in the United States.

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EPV+retro.jpg — This baby’s placenta dropped below the 10th percentile by 32 weeks gestation.

Tragically, the placenta was not measured during pregnancy. Standard biophysical profiles showed a healthy pregnancy. The child was stillborn at full term.
This chart was created retroactively with ultrasounds on file. It likely would have indicated induction - and saved a life.
This experience is too common.

Read the stories of sudden, unexplained loss

Poor birth outcomes are associated with increasingly smaller placentas.
Many families have shared with us just how small their babies’ placentas were.

Placental Percentiles and Ratios