Hydatidiform Mole Essay Example
Hydatidiform Mole Essay Example

Hydatidiform Mole Essay Example

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  • Pages: 2 (282 words)
  • Published: September 5, 2017
  • Type: Instruction
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Molar gestation, a form of gestational trophoblastic disease, is marked by the placement of an inviable fertilized egg in the uterus. This results in an abnormal pregnancy that does not reach full term. Consequently, clusters of grape-like swollen chorionic villi develop within the womb. A molar gestation can occur when a nucleus-deficient fertilized egg is implanted, potentially with or without fetal tissue.

Characterized by the presence of a hydatidiform mole or hydatid mole, mola hydatidosis is a condition categorized into partial and complete moles. The term "mole" refers to a cluster of abnormal tissue growth. A complete mole occurs when either one (90%) or two (10%) sperm fertilizes an egg that has lost its DNA, resulting in the duplication of a "complete" set of 46 chromosomes. The genotype is usually 46.

Twenty chromosomes (diploid) result from the mitosis o

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f the fertilizing sperm, but can also be 46 (diploid). On the other hand, a partial mole occurs when an egg is fertilized by two sperm or when one sperm duplicates, resulting in genotypes of 69 (triploid) or 92 (tetraploid).

The risk of choriocarcinoma, a malignant trophoblast cell tumor, is higher in complete hydatidiform moles compared to partial moles. The term "hydatidiform" comes from the Greek word for "a bead of water," referencing the watery contents of the cysts. The term "mole" is derived from the Latin word for "ocean sunfish," which symbolizes a millstone or false construct.

The term, nevertheless, originates from the resemblance in appearance between the cyst and a hydatid cyst in Echinococcosis. In medical terms, a hydatidiform mole can be classified as a non-induced (natural) "missed abortion" – colloquially known as a "missed miscarriage" – as the

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pregnancy has become non-viable (miscarried) but was not immediately expelled (thus "missed").

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