Asymptomatic uterine incarceration at term: a rare complication of pregnancy.

Background: Uterine retroversion before 12 to 14 weeks' gestation occurs in approximately 15% of pregnancies and is usually considered an innocuous finding. When the uterus remains retroverted as the pregnancy advances, the growing uterine corpus becomes impacted in the hollow of the pelvic cavity and uterine incarceration may develop. Incarcerated retroverted uterus at term is an extremely rare and serious complication of pregnancy.

Case: A 30-year-old primigravida with asymptomatic uterine incarceration at term underwent a challenging Caesarean section because of the distortion of her anatomy.

Conclusion: Recognition of a gravid uterus that is retroverted and incarcerated at term or near-term is critical because Caesarean section is necessary for delivery and that is likely to be challenging.