A case report of a pregnant woman with compensated liver cirrhosis and pancytopenia

Abstract

Key Clinical Message Liver cirrhosis may worsen during pregnancy resulting in adverse maternal and fetal outcomes. Proper antenatal evaluation, staging, and variceal screening will facilitate the management. Elective endoscopic variceal ligation (EVL) during the second trimester can prevent unexpected variceal bleeding. A multidisciplinary approach including the planning of delivery and shared decision‐making is recommended for favorable pregnancy outcomes. Abstract Pregnancy in women with liver cirrhosis is relatively uncommon. During pregnancy, liver cirrhosis and portal hypertension may worsen significantly, placing both the mother and fetus at an increased risk of serious morbidity and life‐threatening events. With the use of a wide variety of diagnostic tools and considerably improved treatment strategies, many women with liver disease in pregnancies are being diagnosed with significantly improved obstetric outcomes. We present a case of a 33‐year‐old lady with a previous medical history of cryptogenic chronic liver disease and schistosomiasis associated with periportal fibrosis, portal hypertension, splenomegaly, and pancytopenia. The mother presented to our tertiary care center at 18 weeks of gestation. She had EVL twice during the second trimester. With multidisciplinary care and follow‐up, she labored spontaneously and was discharged home on third postnatal day.

Keywords

• endoscopic variceal ligation (EVL)
• liver cirrhosis
• portal hypertension (PHTN)
• splenomegaly
• thrombocytopenia