title: Successful pregnancy achieved by assisted reproductive techniques in a woman with severe congenital bicuspid aortic valve stenosis.
abstract: OBJECTIVE
  To report a twin pregnancy achieved by assisted reproductive techniques in a woman with severe congenital bicuspid aortic valve stenosis.
  
  
  METHODS
  Intracytoplasmic sperm injection and embryo transfer was performed in a 38-year-old woman with a complaint of infertility for 8 years due to male factor and who previously had the diagnosis of severe congenital bicuspid aortic stenosis. Clinical and echocardiography follow-up during pregnancy was done.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The woman had severe congenital aortic stenosis with a valve area of 0.4 cm(2) and a peak gradient of 57 mmHg. In the first trial, twin pregnancy was achieved. She had an uneventful course of pregnancy in terms of cardiac functions. She underwent caesarean section at 36 weeks of gestation and had a healthy female and a male newborns.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  A woman with a severe congenital bicuspid aortic valve may get pregnant and deliver healthy newborns with intensive prenatal care and follow-up. The severe congenital bicuspid aortic valve stenosis may not be considered an absolute contraindication for assisted reproductive techniques and pregnancy.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics and Gynaecology, Cerrahpasa Medical Faculty, Istanbul University, Istanbul, Turkey.
authors.forename: Cemal Tamer
authors.initials: CT
authors.lastname: Erel
authors.forename: Sanli
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Erkan
authors.forename: Omer Yavuz
authors.initials: OY
authors.lastname: Simsek
authors.forename: Serdar
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Kucukoglu
mesh_terms: D000328:Adult; D001024:Aortic Valve Stenosis / Q000151:congenital*; D002585:Cesarean Section; D004624:Embryo Transfer; D005260:Female; D006801:Humans; D007231:Infant, Newborn; D007248:Infertility, Male / Q000628:therapy; D008297:Male; D011247:Pregnancy; D011249:Pregnancy Complications, Cardiovascular; D011256:Pregnancy Outcome; D011272:Pregnancy, Multiple; D012720:Severity of Illness Index; D020554:Sperm Injections, Intracytoplasmic; D014427:Twins