We report a 28-year-old woman presenting with a complete hyaditiform mole localized to the cervix. She had undergone
curettage of
missed abortion two months previously and the aborted material showed normal placental tissue on histopathologic examination. Two months after
curettage she presented with sudden severe
vaginal bleeding. Clinical examination revealed a lesion of the epithelial outer surface of the cervix. Due to the
bleeding, immediate surgical intervention was necessary. Histological examination revealed a
complete hydatidiform mole. Currently, only three cases of this exceedingly rare diagnosis have been published: two reported a partial mole and one a
complete hydatidiform mole. In our case, we hypothesize that the pathogenesis took place in two steps. Initially the
curettage of the
missed abortion damaged the endometrial lining. During a new rapid re-fertilization after the
missed abortion, a hydatidiform
molar pregnancy developed. Normally this abnormal trophoblast tissue would adhere to the endometrium but in this case we assume that intrauterine implantation was not possible because of endometrial damage at the prior
curettage, allowing the abnormal trophoblast tissue to pass the endocervix and emerge into the vaginal vault. Presumably, during the
curettage an epithelial defect was produced on the outer surface of the cervix, due to clamping the cervix during dilatation. We speculate that this weak spot on the epithelial surface was responsible for the adherence to the cervix and subsequent
bleeding was caused by injury of maternal blood vessels. We propose that careful holding of the cervix with atraumatic clamps during
curettage is important to avoid subsequent complications.