Short report
Hydatidiform mole resulting from sexual violence
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* Corresponding author: Jefferson Drezett jdrezett@gmail.com
1 Laboratório de Escrita Científica, Departamento de Morfologia e Fisiologia, Faculdade de Medicina do ABC, Av. Príncipe de Gales, 821, 09060-650 Santo André, SP, Brazil
2 Departamento de Fonoaudiologia, Faculdade de Filosofia e Ciências, Universidade Estadual Paulista, UNESP, Av. Hygino Muzzi Filho, 737, 17525-900 Marília, SP, Brazil
3 Departamento de Fisioterapia, Faculdade de Ciências e Tecnologia, Universidade Estadual Paulista, UNESP, Rua Roberto Simonsen, 305, 19060-900 Presidente Prudente, SP, Brazil
4 Rua Pedroso Alvarenga 1255 conjunto 64, CEP 045331 012 Itaim Bibi, SP, Brazil
International Archives of Medicine 2012, 5:8 doi:10.1186/1755-7682-5-8
Published: 21 February 2012Abstract
Background
Hydatidiform mole (HM) is characterized by abnormal proliferation of human trophoblast with producers functioning tissues of human chorionic gonadotropin. It can evolve with ovarian cysts tecaluteínicos, hypertension of pregnancy or hyperthyroidism. The incidence of HM is variable and its etiology poorly known, associated with nutritional factors, environmental, age, parity, history of HM, oral contraceptives, smoking, consanguinity or defects in germ cells. There is no reference in literature on HM resulting from sexual violence, objective of this report.
Method
Description of two cases of HM among 1146 patients with pregnancy resulting from sexual violence treated at Hospital Pérola Byington, São Paulo, from July 1994 to August 2011.
Results
The cases affected young, white, unmarried, low educated and low parity women. Sexual violence was perpetrated by known offenders unrelated to the victims, under death threat. Ultrasound and CT of the pelvis showed bulky uterus compatible with HM without myometrial invasion. One case was associated with theca lutein cysts. The two cases were diagnosed in the second trimester of pregnancy and evolved with hyperthyroidism. There was no hypertension, disease recurrence, metastasis or sexually transmitted infection.
Conclusion
The incidence of HM was 1:573 pregnancies resulting from rape, within the range estimated for Latin American countries. Trophoblastic material can be preserved to identify the violence perpetrator, considering only the paternal HM chromosomes. History of sexual violence should be investigated in cases of HM in the first half of adolescence and women in a vulnerable condition.