The presence of inflammatory cells in the chorionic villi (villitis) may indicate the presence of an infectious disease.
The presence of neutrophils indicates acute villitis, which can occur with acute bacterial infections, especially Listeria monocytogenes. A Brucella species should be suspected in a woman who has lived or traveled to an area where the organism occurs. Many bacteria causing maternal sepsis cause intra-placental abscesses.
Chronic villitis (with lymphocytes and plasma cells) may be seen with:
(1) cytomegalovirus (CMV)
(2) toxoplasmosis
(3) syphilis
(4) rubella
(5) other viruses
(6) villitis of unknown etiology (VUE)
CMV villitis may feature:
(1) villous sclerosis
(2) plasma cell infiltrate
(3) hemosiderin-laden macrophages
(4) intranuclear inclusions
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