Management of complete heart block detected during labor: A case report

Abstract

Complete heart block in women of childbearing age is rare, and incidental diagnosis during pregnancy is more uncommon. Hence, there remain no well-established guidelines on the management of patients with complete heart block presenting in labor. Here, we present a 26-year-old full-term primigravida, with no known previous cardiac history, in active labor with asymptomatic bradycardia in the 30–40s unresponsive to atropine augmentation. After multidisciplinary consultation, the decision was to proceed with delivery as planned without indication for a temporary pacemaker. The patient successfully delivered a full-term infant via operative vaginal delivery, with an ensuing cardiac workup completed postpartum.

Keywords

• american society of anesthesiologists (asa)
• antinuclear antibody (ana)
• atrioventricular (av)
• electrocardiogram (ecg)
• thyroid function test (tft)
• thyroid-stimulating hormone (tsh)