Pregnancy: maternal and fetal heart disease

Cardiac disorders complicate less than 1% of all pregnancies. Physiologic changes in pregnancy may mimic heart disease. In order to differentiate these adaptations from pathologic conditions, an in-depth knowledge of cardiovascular physiology is mandatory. A comprehensive history, physical examination, electrocardiogram, chest radiograph, and echocardiogram are sufficient in most cases to confirm the diagnosis. Care of women with cardiac disease begins with preconception counseling. Severe lesions should be taken care of prior to contemplating pregnancy. Management principles for pregnant women are similar to those for the non-pregnant state. A team approach comprised of a maternal fetal medicine specialist, cardiologist, neonatologist, and anesthesiologist is essential to assure optimal outcome for both the mother and the fetus. Although fetal heart disease complicates only a small percentage of pregnancies, congenital heart disease causes more neonatal morbidity and mortality than any other congenital malformation. Unfortunately, screening approaches for fetal heart disease continue to miss a large percentage of cases. This weakness in fetal screening has important clinical implications, because the prenatal detection and diagnosis of congenital heart disease may improve the outcome for many of these fetal patients. In fact, simply the detection of major heart disease prenatally can improve neonatal outcome by avoiding discharge to home of neonates with ductal-dependent congenital heart disease. Fortunately, recent advances in screening techniques, an increased ability to change the prenatal natural history of many forms of fetal heart disease, and an increasing recognition of the importance of a multidisciplinary, team approach to the management of pregnancies complicated with fetal heart disease, together promise to improve the outcome of the fetus with congenital heart disease.