Clinical and echocardiographic follow-up in pregnant patients with valvular heart disease

OBJECTIVES
Pregnancy associated cardiovascular changes may result in a significant hemodynamic burden and can lead to morbidity and even mortality in women with cardiac disease. The present study aimed to evaluate clinical and echocardiographic follow-up in pregnant patients with valvular heart disease (VHD).
STUDY DESIGN
The medical records of pregnant patients diagnosed with VHD from January 2004 to January 2011 were screened. Demographic characteristics including history of cardiac intervention performed during pregnancy, pulmonary edema, and maternal and fetal mortality, and cesarean section (C/S) history were collected from the hospital database and clinical records of the cardiology and obstetrics departments. The echocardiographic examination was carried out at presentation, 3rd trimester, and 1 month after delivery. The outcomes evaluated were cardiac intervention, pulmonary edema, and both fetal and maternal mortality during pregnancy and C/S.
RESULTS
We evaluated the outcomes of 884 pregnant patients with VHD. Adverse clinical outcomes including death, pulmonary edema, and valvular interventions were frequent among patients with severe VHD, whereas no adverse clinical outcome was observed in patients with mild-moderate VHD (n=49, 5.5% vs. n=0, 0%, p<0.001). In patients with severe VHD, clinical outcomes were frequent among patients with valve stenosis, but lower among patients with regurgitation [death 4 (0.45%) vs. 0 (0%); pulmonary edema (15 (1.7%) vs. 13 (1.5%); valvular intervention 11 (1.2%) vs. 6 (0.7%); respectively).
CONCLUSION
Valvular heart disease is associated with fetal/ maternal morbidity and mortality. Pregnant with severe VHD constitute a high-risk group in which life-threatening complications are likely to occur in the course of pregnancy.