Chronic deciduitis in stillbirths: are there any specific clinical associations?

Introduction: Placental chronic deciduitis is a lesion consistent with the presence of plasma cells within the placental basal plate. It could be associated with adverse pregnancy outcomes, including stillbirth. Methods: We retrospectively evaluated a cohort of 180 antepartum stillborn cases from singleton pregnancies, with the aim of investigating the clinical-histopathological relationship. Placental slides were reviewed following the standard protocol proposed by the “Amsterdam consensus statement”. Results: We observed an association between chronic deciduitis and lesions consistent with maternal vascular malperfusion, delayed villous maturation, villitis of unknown etiology and maternal autoimmunity. Conclusions: The observed clinical-histopathological associations suggest that an extensive maternal investigation could improve the comprehension of factors interfering with the placental development and the increasing risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes. Highlights Chronic deciduitis is associated with lesions consistent with maternal vascular malperfusion Chronic deciduitis is associated with delayed villous maturation Chronic deciduitis is associated with villitis of unknown etiology Chronic deciduitis is associated with maternal autoimmunity.