Homograft aortic root replacement during pregnancy.
Operative cardiac interventions have been performed on pregnant women with varying degrees of success since the late 1950s. Currently, reported maternal mortality for cardiac operations is similar to the mortality rate for nonpregnant female patients. However, fetal mortality remains high, at approximately 20%. Aortic root replacement with an aortic homograft in a 34-year-old pregnant woman with bacterial endocarditis at 18 weeks gestation is presented. Fetal echocardiography during and after bypass was employed.
Department of Surgery, Pennsylvania Hospital, Philadelphia 19106, USA.
Kapil
K
Gopal
Ida M
IM
Hudson
Jack
J
Ludmir
Michael N
MN
Braffman
Stanley
S
Ewing
Joseph E
JE
Bavaria
Kar-Lai
KL
Wong
Charles R
CR
Bridges
D000328:Adult; D001021:Aortic Valve / Q000637:transplantation*; D001022:Aortic Valve Insufficiency / Q000601:surgery*; D002315:Cardiopulmonary Bypass; D005260:Female; D005318:Fetal Heart / Q000000981:diagnostic imaging; D006324:Heart Arrest, Induced; D006801:Humans; D011247:Pregnancy; D011249:Pregnancy Complications, Cardiovascular / Q000601:surgery*; D014184:Transplantation, Homologous; D016216:Ultrasonography, Prenatal