Post-delivery cardiomyopathy in a patient admitted to critical care unit; a rare case report.
BACKGROUND
Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is an uncommon disease that affects women in the last month of pregnancy or within the first five months postpartum, occurring in about 1 in 3500 live births. The disease bears potentially devastating effects both on mother and the fetus if not treated early in its course.


METHODS
The case was a 34-year old woman with a triple pregnancy who presented to the ward immediately after cesarean section with signs of dyspnea, cyanosis and pulmonary edema. She was diagnosed with PPCM upon echocardiography. The patient improved remarkably despite the PPCM's devastating complications. This case report aims to describe a female patient who developed PPCM after a triple delivery.


CONCLUSIONS
Regarding the high risks of developing PPCM in subsequent pregnancies and avoiding multiparty, especially in older age, a reliable contraception in childbearing women would be helpful. The best prevention of PPCM is to avoid subsequent pregnancies.
Anesthesiology and Critical Care Research Center, Isfahan University of Medical Sciences, Isfahan, Iran.
Mohammadreza
M
Safavi
Azim
A
Honarmand
Parviz
P
Kashefi
Saied Morteza
SM
Heidari
Afshin
A
Safavi
Rita
R
Hekmat
Cesarean section; Echocardiography; Gestational hypertension; Myocarditis; Peripartum cardiomyopathy; Preeclampsia; Thrombophilic phenomena