[Traumatic retroplacental hematomas]

In this study the authors present 4 observations of traumatic retroplacental hematomas recorded in the department of obstetrics and gynecology of the general hospital at Meaux between 1979 and 1984. The 4 cases are related to serious injury to the circulation as is shown by a detailed study of the observations. The frequency of these traumatic retroplacental hematomas seems clearly to be on the increase if comparison is made with earlier statistics. The problem of the security girdle is evoked again; the authors themselves think that it should be worn until pregnancy reaches its term. Emergency ultrasonography is the indispensable complement to the obstetric examination carried out on arrival of every pregnancy presenting a trauma enclosed in the abdomen; it may modify the order of the operations to be carried out by the various specialists who are responsible for the surveillance and treatment of these patients; together with monitoring it remains the best means of surveillance of the foetus following a road accident.