[Morphometric placental investigations in EPH-gestosis (pre-eclampsia) (author's transl)]

Morphometric data of 19 placenta after EPH-gestosis of pregnancy are compared with data of placenta of uncomplicated pregnancies. No statistically significant differences were found concerning the area of attachment of the placentas, the amount of fibrin deposits in the intervillous space and the amount of syncytial knots of the terminal villi. The areas of the cross section as well as the circumferences of the resorption villi were increased in the placentas of pre-eclampsia of pregnancy. The number of capillaries per villus was the same in both groups. The diameters of the vessels however were smaller in the gestosis group. Also a decrease of the degree of vascularisation of the villi was found. The number and length of epithelial plates and their quota of the circumference of the villi were markedly diminished in the EPH-gestosis group. These morphologic findings are signs of retarded maturation (differentiation) of the resorption villi. The results explain the ineffectiveness of therapeutic attempts in many cases of pre-eclampsia.