MADISON, Wis. – Taryn Apodaca has been a mom for 14 years, and her five healthy children bring a smile to her face.
“They make me happy and are constantly making me laugh,” said Apodaca, who lives in Shullsburg with her husband and children. “We knew we wanted kids right away and it has been the best.”
Reflecting on her potentially life-threatening journey this past year stirs up a different feeling.
“I get emotional thinking about some of the bad things that could have happened with my diagnosis,” she said.
“My four previous children were cesarean sections, but they were healthy pregnancies and good deliveries, so to be given a serious diagnosis was incredibly scary,” she said.
At 31 weeks, in early June, Apodaca met with Dr. Erin Bailey, a UW Health maternal-fetal medicine physician who practices at Meriter, to discuss the comprehensive plan to treat the confirmed diagnosis; placenta accreta.
The condition occurs when the placenta abnormally attaches to the uterine wall and can lead to excess bleeding and hemorrhaging. Normally, the placenta detaches from the uterine wall after childbirth, but with this condition, it does not, according to Bailey, who is also an assistant professor of obstetrics and gynecology, University of Wisconsin School of Medicine and Public Health.
This is a rare but serious complication that, if not treated surgically, could be dangerous and even deadly for the mother, she said.
“If the mother goes into labor, there could be major risks, with a serious amount of blood loss,” Bailey said. “The recommendation is to do a C-section between 34 and 36 weeks, which is about a month earlier than most babies are born.”
After talking to Apodaca, 36 weeks, July 8, was chosen as the right time for the scheduled C-section, Bailey said.
Apodaca was able to manage her condition at home but was told to call if she had any bleeding prior to her scheduled delivery. If she had any bleeding, she would need to get to Madison immediately.
“Dr. Bailey put me at ease, but it was still a stressful few weeks before the C-section,” Apodaca said. “It felt like forever, but I made it to my surgery date.”
Many times, with a placenta accreta, a hysterectomy, or the removal of the uterus, is required to get the placenta out safely, but the care team doesn’t know until they are actively assessing in real time, said Bailey, who performed Apodaca’s surgery.
“In Taryn’s case, we realized we would need to put her under and remove her uterus,” Bailey said. “We did the surgery to make sure she was going to be there for all of her kids.”
The Apodacas figured River would be their last child even before the diagnosis, and they understood the potential need for a hysterectomy, but it was still emotional to find out in surgery.
“I was a little sad knowing I can’t have any more kids, but it was necessary,” Apodaca said. “It was hard not meeting River until after the surgery, but this experience has taught me being a mom is something I will never take for granted.”
River was five pounds at birth but only needed an afternoon stay in the neonatal intensive care unit. The family was able to go home after a few days, a standard stay in the hospital post-childbirth.
While a placenta accreta diagnosis is still rare, it is becoming more common, according to Bailey.
It used to be about one in 1,000 cases, but now it is more like one in 250 or 300, she said.
“The biggest risk factor is a previous uterine surgery, like a C-section, because the placenta implants deeply on the old scar tissue,” Bailey said. “The number of C-sections has increased in the United States, and doctors are doing better at identifying the condition on ultrasounds.”
The UW Health Placenta Accreta Program at Meriter started in 2021 and has continued to expand its reach to patients across the state and region, giving families a resource closer to home. The team includes maternal-fetal medicine specialists, surgeons, nurses, urologists, anesthesiologists and many other medical professionals who can treat complex pregnancies.
“Most of the patients I see spent their pregnancy worried and anxious and for good reasons,” Bailey said. “But to reassure them and work with the team to make sure healthy families go home, there is nothing more rewarding.”
Back in Shullsburg, 10 months later, the Apodacas are thriving and happy.
“River lights up every time he sees his siblings,” she said. “He has completed our family.”
Though it was a 90-minute drive to Meriter, the family is glad they never had to leave the state.
“I knew going to Madison, I was going to be in the right place to save my life,” Apodaca said.
