These data suggest that planned caesarean section does not confer any advantage over planned vaginal delivery, in terms of maternal outcome, but is associated with an adverse fetal outcome.
ObjectivesInformation to guide counselling and management for pregnancy in women with Marfan syndrome (MFS) is limited. We therefore conducted a UK multicentre study.MethodsRetrospective observational study of women with MFS delivering between January 1998 and March 2018 in 12 UK centres reporting data on maternal and neonatal outcomes.ResultsIn total, there were 258 pregnancies in 151 women with MFS (19 women had prior aortic root replacements), including 226 pregnancies ≥24 weeks (two sets of twins), 20 miscarriages and 12 pregnancy terminations. Excluding miscarriages and terminations, there were 221 live births in 139 women. Only 50% of women received preconception counselling. There were no deaths, but five women experienced aortic dissection (1.9%; one type A and four type B—one had a type B dissection at 12 weeks and subsequent termination of pregnancy). Five women required cardiac surgery postpartum. No predictors for aortic dissection could be identified. The babies of the 131 (65.8%) women taking beta-blockers were on average 316 g lighter (p<0.001). Caesarean section rates were high (50%), particularly in women with dilated aortic roots. In 55 women, echocardiographic aortic imaging was available prepregnancy and postpregnancy; there was a small but significant average increase in AoR size of 0.84 mm (Median follow-up 2.3 months)ConclusionThere were no maternal deaths, and the aortic dissection rate was 1.9% (mainly type B). There with no identifiable factors associated with aortic dissection in our cohort. Preconception counselling rates were low and need improvement. Aortic size measurements increased marginally following pregnancy.
scite is a Brooklyn-based organization that helps researchers better discover and understand research articles through Smart Citations–citations that display the context of the citation and describe whether the article provides supporting or contrasting evidence. scite is used by students and researchers from around the world and is funded in part by the National Science Foundation and the National Institute on Drug Abuse of the National Institutes of Health.