Primary hepatic pregnancy

Abstract

Introduction. Hepatic pregnancy is an extremely rare form of ectopic pregnancy, and represents a difficult challenge for both diagnostics and treatment. Case outline. A 40-year-old gravida 0 para 0 patient in 6 + 0 gestational weeks was admitted to the hospital with lower abdominal pain, positive bHCG values, and presence of free intra-abdominal fluid. She had a history of infertility, and also a previous surgery due to pelvic endometriosis. Urgent open surgery was performed due to signs of hypovolemic shock. We discovered a rupture of the left ovarian corpus luteum cyst. Bleeding management was achieved with preservation of ovarian tissue. Patient recovered, bHCG levels continued to rise, and five days after surgery free intra-abdominal fluid reappeared with upper abdominal pain and tenderness. After transferring patient to abdominal surgery clinic, second surgery was performed, where we confirmed the presence of hepatic pregnancy. After this procedure, patient fully recovered. Conclusion. The method of choice for an ectopic pregnancy treatment is laparoscopic surgery, but when laparoscopy is not possible, the site of ectopic pregnancy could be difficult to diagnose. Prolonged time for making accurate diagnosis increases the risk of ectopic pregnancy complications.

Keywords

• hepatic pregnancy
• ectopic pregnancy
• bhcg
• acute abdomen