Kim Kardashian May Get a Hysterectomy After Son's Birth Because of Condition -- What Is Placenta Accreta?

Reality TV star Kim Kardashian graced the cover of C Magazine's 10th anniversary issue, where she revealed some surprising developments into her second pregnancy. The wife of Kanye West, who was also the subject of the magazine's feature story, did not hold back in talking about pregnancy struggles.

Kim relayed that it took her and Kanye over a year to try and have another baby, given that the first pregnancy, which produced daughter North West, had some complications. "I had this condition called placenta accreta. There were a couple of little operations to fix all that, so that created a little hole in my uterus, which I think made it really tough to get pregnant again. It was a long road," Kim told C Magazine.

The social media star assumes she may have placenta accreta with the second birth, so a third pregnancy may no longer be possible for her and her husband. "If the placenta grows a little bit deeper than it did last time, then they are prepared to have my uterus removed, which is a little scary for me. I think we're just gonna go day by day, see how overwhelming it is, and see how the delivery goes," Kim said.

In a normal pregnancy, the placenta naturally detaches from the uterine wall during birth, but in placenta acceta cases, the growth may be far too deep that removing it may be critical for the mother, according to The Daily Beast.

The condition Kim describes can cause massive bleeding and the mother may require blood transfusions during the delivery, according to Baby Center. One way to stop the bleeding is for doctors to perform a hysterectomy or the removal of the uterus.

According to the Mayo Clinic, there are often no signs or symptoms a mother has placenta accreta, but a routine ultrasound may help detect this.

The cause of the pregnancy complication is linked to the uterus' lining. The risk factors are high, particularly with mothers who are 35 years old and above. Kim will be 35 when she gives birth to her second child.

Even with the possibility of losing her uterus, Kim said that she still feels lucky with her second pregnancy. "I don't feel like I'm gonna get preeclampsia again, which last time [contributed to] not only the weight, but also the swelling that everyone would make fun of, not understanding that I had this condition," she told the magazine.