Is posterior placenta dangerous or a complication for vaginal birth? – Dr. Jyoti Kala

The placenta is an organ that is attached to the uterus of the mother and delivers nutrition and oxygen from the mother to the baby via the umbilical cord. So basically the placenta is a life support system of the baby. The placenta is attached to the front wall of the uterus called as the anterior placenta or the back wall of the uterus called as posterior placenta. Both anterior and posterior placenta are normal in pregnancy and no case of worry. Sometimes those placenta might be attached to the lower end of the cervix which is near the cervix. This is called as low lying placenta. This low lying placenta in early pregnancy is not a cause of worry, as the pregnancy we see most of the stretching and growing is done by the lower part of the uterus. And as the placenta is attached to it, it gets carried up with it and a low lying placenta fond in early pregnancy might be most likely be found at a higher level in subsequent scans. Only when the placenta continues to be low lying subsequent scans closer to term, it is when we are more concerned about other complications like bleeding or preterm birth. So a posterior placenta is no cause of worry and you can definitely go ahead with normal vaginal delivery with a posterior placenta.