Anesthetic Management for Caesarean Section of Peripartum Cardiomyopathy: A Case Report

Abstract

Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is a rare disease of unknown etiology but serious form of cardiac failure affecting women in the last month of pregnancy or during the first 5 months post-partum. Anesthetic management of such cases is a challenge due to the increased risk of various perioperative complications. We report the successful anesthetic management of emergency lower segment caesarean section in a patient with PPCM using low dose spinal anesthesia.

Anesthetic Management in Peripartum Cardiomyopathy: A Contemporary Review

“…Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is an uncommon, potentially fatal clinical condition with no recognized cause. The definition has four requirements: (a) the onset of heart failure within five months of delivery or in the final month of pregnancy; (b) the heart failure has no known etiology; (c) there is no obvious cardiac illness before the last month of pregnancy; and (d) there should be echocardiographic evidence of left ventricular systolic dysfunction (ejection fraction of 45% and reduced fractional shortening) [ 1 , 2 ]. Thus, it is a diagnosis of exclusion.…”