Bleeding from the lower uterine segment (LUS) during caesarean section remains a life-threatening obstetric problem, particularly in women with placenta praevia or partial placenta accreta in the LUS. Various conservative measures for the surgical treatment of postpartum haemorrhage have been studied for decades. In this paper we describe a funnel compression suture to staunch intractable bleeding from LUS for placenta praevia accreta. The suture brings the anterior and posterior walls of the LUS together using absorbable thread and was successful in the overwhelming majority of women. It is an easy, safe and effective conservative surgical treatment to stop severe bleeding of the LUS.
Keywords: Funnel compression suture; lower uterine segment; placenta accreta; placenta praevia; postpartum haemorrhage.
© 2015 Royal College of Obstetricians and Gynaecologists.