The placenta matures as the pregnancy progresses, and at a certain level of maturity, it becomes less functional and older, which is reflected in changes in placental echogenicity on ultrasound. If the placenta is aging, it may not be able to provide enough oxygen and nutrients to the fetus.
Measuring the maturity of the placenta under ultrasound I*** is divided into four grades, grade 0, grade I, grade II and grade III. Grade 0 is usually the immaturity of the placenta in the early and middle trimesters, and grade I is the maturity, which is manifested in the early stage probably around 29 to 36 weeks. Grade II signifies that the placenta is essentially mature, and most full-term pregnancies have a grade II placenta. Grade III placenta is to indicate that the placenta has matured and towards aging, then ultrasound can be seen in the placenta, there are a large number of strong echoes of the light spots, around a placenta leaflets, indicating that the placenta appeared to be calcification and fibrous deposits, the placenta's ability to transport oxygen and nutrients will be reduced, the fetus may be in the uterus in the lack of oxygen manifestation.
The premature maturity of the placenta also means that the placenta is aging faster, which can lead to insufficient oxygen supply to the fetus, and even fetal growth retardation. However, in recent years, this method of ultrasound diagnosis has been slowly abandoned, and the clinic relies more on fetal heart rate monitoring and maternal comorbidities to comprehensively determine the function of the placenta.