The placenta is considered an important organ that evolves with the implantation of the blastocyst throughout the pregnancy. The placenta has an essential role in functions such as nutrition, excretion, and immunologic and endocrine function. The normal placenta is a round-or oval-shaped organ that attaches to the uterine wall and has roughly 22 cm in diameter and a thickness of about 2-2.5 cm and weighs about one sixth of the fetal birth weight. Thus, a normal development of the placenta is important for an uneventful embryonic and fetal development. Consequently, the placenta abnormalities can range from structural anomalies, to function disorders, to site of implantation abnormalities.

Abdominal wall defects (AWDs) represent a group of congenital anomalies that can be diagnosed early during pregnancy even at the time of the first trimester assessment, with direct impact on pre-and postnatal fetal prognosis and management decisions. The most frequent anomalies in this group are gastroschisis and omphalocele. The key method available, that allows the detection of any deviation from the physiologic midgut herniation, is the ultrasound (US) assessment. A precise algorithmic scan approach is imposed not only for an accurate detection of any abdominal wall defect, but also for a proper location of the defect and of the spatial relation to the umbilical cord insertion, fundamentally important in differentiating among various malformations. Other structural or chromosomal anomalies should be excluded. Suitable multidisciplinary counseling should be considered. Unfortunately, in utero surgery, in these cases, has not been yet successful. Postnatal early interventions are usually required in specialized pediatric centers.