Doctors at the University Medicine Centre in HCM City perform an aortic surgery on a pregnant woman with Marfan syndrome. Photo courtesy of the University Medicine Centre

HCM CITY — Doctors at the University Medicine Centre in HCM City have saved the life of a 33-year-old pregnant woman with Marfan syndrome and her baby after successfully performing emergency aortic surgery.

The woman, who was 33 weeks pregnant when she came for a check-up at Từ Dũ Obstetrics Hospital, was transferred to the University Medicine Centre.

She had frequently experienced loss of consciousness, shortness of breath and weak pulse during her pregnancy but doctors at Từ Dũ only diagnosed her with heart disease in the third trimester.

Acute aortic dissection (AAD) during pregnancy can be fatal to both the mother and baby, Nguyễn Hoàng Định, head of the hospital’s department of cardiovascular surgery, said.

An emergency surgery with co-ordination between obstetrics and cardiology is essential in such cases to deliver the baby, and the aortic surgery was performed two days after the delivery, he told a press meeting on Monday.

A 1.8kg baby girl was delivered by a Caesarean section and admitted to the hospital’s neonatal intensive care unit.

The mother has recovered well after the surgery, and she and the baby are now stable.

Trần Nhật Thăng, head of the hospital’s obstetrics department, said women should have premarital and preconception check-ups to ensure a safe and health pregnancy.

Marfan syndrome is a genetic disorder that affects the body’s connective tissue. 

People with Marfan syndrome are usually tall and thin with disproportionately long arms, legs, fingers and toes, doctors said. — VNS