Predicting Placental Abruption and Previa in Women with a Previous Cesarean Delivery

The purpose of this study was to determine if placental abruption or previa in women with a history of a prior cesarean delivery (CD) can be predicted. A retrospective cohort study of pregnant women with previous CD was conducted in 17 centers between 1996 and 2000. Women developing placenta previa or abruption in the subsequent pregnancy were compared with those without these complications. Bivariate and multivariable techniques were used to develop predictive models for placenta previa or abruption. The area under the receiver-operator characteristic curves, sensitivity, specificity, and accuracy of the models were compared. Among 25,076 women with prior CD, there were 361 (15 per 1000 births) with placenta previa and 309 (13 per 1000 births) with abruption. The significant risk factors for these complications include advanced maternal age, Asian race, increased parity, illicit drug use, history of spontaneous abortion, and three or more prior cesarean deliveries. Prediction models for abruption and previa had poor sensitivity (12% and 13% for abruption and previa, respectively). In women with at least one prior cesarean delivery, the risk factors for placental previa and abruption can be identified. However, prediction models combining these risk factors were too inefficient to be useful.