Background: To report on prophylactic therapy for hyperfibrinolysis with tranexamic acid (TXA) during expectant management (EM) in the placenta accreta spectrum (PAS).
Methods: This is a monocentric retrospective study of women with PAS presenting at our hospital between 2005 and 2021. All data were retrospectively collected through the departmental database.
Results: 35 patients with PAS were included. EM was planned in 25 patients prior to delivery. Complete absorption of the retained placenta was seen in two patients (8%). Curettage was performed in 14 patients (56%). A hysterectomy (HE) was needed in seven (28%) patients; 18 patients (72%) underwent uterus-preserving treatment without severe complications. The mean duration of EM was 107 days. The mean day of onset of hyperfibrinolysis and beginning of TXA treatment was day 45. The mean nadir of fibrinogen level before TXA was 242.4 mg/dL, with a mean drop of 29.7% in fibrinogen level.
Conclusions: Our data support EM as a safe treatment option in PAS. Hyperfibrinolysis can be a cause of hemorrhage during EM and can be treated with TXA. To our knowledge, this is the first cohort of patients with EM of PAS in whom coagulation monitoring and use of TXA have been shown to successfully treat hyperfibrinolysis.
Keywords: D-dimer; disseminated intravascular coagulopathy; expectant management; fibrinogen; hyperfibrinolysis; placenta accreta spectrum; tranexamic acid.