Incidence of gestational trophoblastic disease detected by routine histopathologic study of specimens obtained from abortions

BACKGROUND: Gestational trophoblastic disease (GTD) comprises different types of placental changes distinguished by histologic hydropic degeneration and swelling of chorionic villi. OBJECTIVE: To report incidence of gestational trophoblastic disease in a general hospital. MATERIAL AND METHODS: A cross-sectional study in the period of January 2000 to June 2006 was made. Histopathologic report of specimen abortion with gestational trophoblastic disease was registered and we calculated the incidence of births, abortions and total pregnancies. RESULTS: In the study period, 142 cases of gestational trophoblastic disease were registered, and an incidence of 1:243 births and 1:31 abortions (1:274 pregnancies) was found. The average age of patients was 27.1 years (15 to 50), 67% of the cases were not clinically suspected. CONCLUSIONS: Histopathologic study of specimen abortions allows calculating precisely incidence of gestational trophoblastic disease, but the findings of this study may be different because numerators and denominators used in the calculation are not the same.