Placenta previa in later pregnancies
The risk nearly triples between one and three prior cesareans.
In a systematic review of 21 studies covering more than 2.2 million deliveries, placenta previa occurred in 10 per 1,000 deliveries in women with one prior cesarean and 28 per 1,000 in women with three or more.
Previa alone requires a cesarean. Previa combined with prior cesareans is what produces placenta accreta, and the combination is dangerous in a way neither is alone. Among women with previa and three or more prior cesareans, composite serious maternal complications occurred in 83%, compared with 15% among women with previa and no prior cesarean.
Where this comes from:
285. Marshall NE, Fu R, Guise JM. Impact of multiple cesarean deliveries on maternal morbidity: a systematic review. Am J Obstet Gynecol. 2011;205(3):262.e1-262.e8.
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