Acute heart failure in pregnancy: importance of a timely multidisciplinary approach to recognition and management

Abstract

Increased cardiovascular demands of pregnancy may unmask occult diseases, such as dilated cardiomyopathy or valvular stenosis, or precipitate peripartum cardiomyopathy. We report a case of the emergency management and delivery of a young pregnant woman who presented with acute decompensated heart failure that was not immediately recognized. An emergency transfer to a tertiary care institution was arranged. Once diagnosed, the patient received multidisciplinary care shared between cardiologists, obstetricians, cardiac anesthetists, a neonatologist, and a midwife, resulting in good maternal and fetal outcomes.

Keywords

• acute disease
• heart failure
• female
• emergency care
• pregnancy