Pregnant Women With Heart Disease More Likely To Die During Pregnancy, Report Says

Main Category: Heart Disease
Also Included In: Pregnancy / Obstetrics;  Cardiovascular / Cardiology
Article Date: 19 Feb 2006 - 9:00 PST

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Women with congenital heart disease are 100 times as likely to die during pregnancy as women who do not have the condition, according to a report published on Monday in BMJ, BBC News reports (BBC News, 2/13). The report -- which was written by Michael Gatzoulis, professor of cardiology and adult congenital heart disease at Royal Brompton Hospital in London, and colleagues -- estimates that more than 125,000 women in the United Kingdom have congenital heart disease (Moss, Independent, 2/13). The report says that heart disease is the second-leading cause of maternal death in the U.K., and the number of women with the condition is expected to increase. The report recommends that doctors provide adequate prepregnancy counseling, as well as prenatal care, to women with congenital heart disease. The report adds that doctors should discuss labor and delivery with such patients "well in advance," adding that the "postpartum period requires a multidisciplinary team approach with cardiologists, obstetricians and anaesthetists" (Gatzoulis et al., BMJ, 2/13). "Prolonged and difficult labor should be avoided, and detailed continuous monitoring of the mother and fetus is mandatory," Gatzoulis wrote. He added, "The principle is to manage the stress of labor in such a way that it does not exceed the woman's capacity to cope with it." According to BBC News, a group of experts at a conference in London this week are expected to call for improved awareness of the risks associated with congenital heart disease and pregnancy (BBC News, 2/13).

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