title: Acute presentation of a heterotopic pregnancy following spontaneous conception: a case report.
abstract: Spontaneous heterotopic pregnancy is a rare clinical condition in which intrauterine and extra uterine pregnancies occur at the same time. It can be a life threatening condition and can be easily missed with the diagnosis being overlooked. We present the case of a 40 year old patient who was treated for a heterotopic pregnancy. She had a transvaginal ultrasound because of a previous ectopic pregnancy and an intrauterine gestational sac was seen with false reassurances. The patient presented acutely with a ruptured tubal pregnancy and this was managed laparoscopically. The ectopic pregnancy was not suspected at her initial presentation. A high index of suspicion is needed in women with risk factors for an ectopic pregnancy and in low risk women who have free fluid with or without an adnexal mass with an intrauterine gestation.
authors.affiliation: Department of Obstetrics & Gynaecology, Princess Anne Hospital, Coxford Road Southampton SO16 5YA, UK.
authors.forename: Sameer
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Umranikar
authors.forename: Aarti
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Umranikar
authors.forename: Junaid
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Rafi
authors.forename: Pauline
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Bawden
authors.forename: Shalini
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Umranikar
authors.forename: Ben
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: O'Sullivan
authors.forename: Adam
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Moors