Abstract

The study was undertaken to investigate the clinical and histopathological characteristics of partial hydatidiform mole. The subjects were a series of consecutive 54 cases of partial hydatidiform mole and 212 cases of classic hydatidiform mole, which were diagnosed pathologically at the department of pathology during the 11 years period from 1970 to 1980. The cases were analyzed morphologically and statistically. The results obtained were summerized as follows: 1) The age distributions of the patients with partial and classic moles were from third to sixth decade with a peak incidence of third decade with a peak incidence of third decade. There was no significant difference in the age distribution between partial and classic moles. 2) In the patients with partial mole, 90% of the cases were multipara and 32% of cases had history of spontaneous or artificial abortion. In the patients with classic mole, 78% of cases were multipara and 36% of cases had history of abortion. There was no significant difference in obstetric history of the both types. 3) Histopathologic findings of the classic mole were hydropic change and central cisterns of the storma (100%), maze-like cisterns of the stroma (4.3%), blood vessels with/without red cells (0.9%), and considerable hyperplasia of trophoblasts (65.6%). 4) Histopathologic findings of the partial mole consisted of hydropic villi admixed with normal villi (100%), hydropic change of the stroma (100%), central cisterns of the stroma (90.4%), maze-like cisterns of the stroma (83.3%), blood vessels with mature and immature red cells (98.1%), and considerable hyperplasia of trophoblasts (22.2%). On the basis of the above results, characteristic findings of partial mole, which might be distinguished from classic type, were maze-like cisterns of the stroma, mixture of normal and hydropic villi, and blood vessels with mature or immature red cells in the stroma.