Volume 73 Number 7 November 2006	back to contents

Department of Medicine, Division of Cardiology, North Shore University Hospital, Manhasset, NY.

Address all correspondence to Michelle Johnson, M.D., Department of Cardiology, Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, 1275 York Avenue, New York, NY 10021; e-mail: amakaryus@gmail.com. Dr. Makaryus is currently at Division of Cardiology, Columbia University Medical Center, New York, NY.

Accepted for publication May 2006.

Abstract

Eisenmenger’s syndrome occurs when a large congenital or surgically created shunt between the left and right sides of the heart causes an increase in pulmonary vascular resistance that equals or surpasses systemic resistance, resulting in a reversal of the shunt from a left-to-right shunt to a right-to-left or bi-directional shunt. The maternal mortality rate of pregnancy in the presence of Eisenmenger’s syndrome is reported to be as high as 50–65% with cesarean section. We present the case of a 32-year-old woman with Eisenmenger’s syndrome who gave birth at 29 weeks of gestation via C-section to a healthy baby boy, and we review the literature regarding the management of such patients.

Key Words

Eisenmenger’s syndrome, pregnancy, congenital heart disease.

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