Dia,

The "medical" term for a molar pregnancy is hydatid mole. I'm pasting in a
description from my handy Mosby Medical Encyclopedia CD-ROM.  Hope it helps
explain what's going on:
HYDATID MOLE      an intrauterine neoplastic mass of grapelike enlarged
chorionic villi occurring in approximately one in 1500 pregnancies in the
United States and eight times more frequently in some oriental countries.
Molar pregnancies are more common in older and younger women than in those
between 20 and 40 years of age. The cause of the degenerative disorder is not
known; it may be the result of a primary ovular defect, an intrauterine
abnormality, or nutritional deficiency. Characteristic signs of the condition
are extreme nausea, uterine bleeding, anemia, hyperthyroidism, an unusually
large uterus for the duration of pregnancy, absence of fetal heart sounds,
edema, and high blood pressure. Diagnostic measures include ultrasonography,
amniography, and serial bioassay of chorionic gonadotropin in the blood. In
most cases the mole is discovered when abortion is threatened or in progress.
Oxytocin may be used to stimulate the evacuation of a mole that is not
spontaneously aborted, and curettage is usually performed several days later
to be certain that no molar tissue remains in the uterus. It is important
that pregnancy be avoided for at least 1 year and that assays for chorionic
gonadotropin be performed to minimize the risk of developing trophoblastic
choriocarcinoma. Also called hydatidiform mole.

I know this is alot of technical mumbo-jumbo, but I know I like to know
EVERYTHING I can about medical conditions, & doctors often don't elaborate.

Carol RNC, MSW, IBCLC
St. Louis Missouri