Digital Commons Network^™

Maternal Cardiac Output And Fetal Doppler Predict Adverse Neonatal Outcomes In Pregnant Women With Heart Disease, Rachel M. Wald, Candice K. Silversides, John Kingdom, Ants Toi, Cathy S. Lau, Jennifer Mason, Jack M. Colman, Mathew Sermer, Samuel C. Siu

Paediatrics Publications

Background-The mechanistic basis of the proposed relationship between maternal cardiac output and neonatal complications in pregnant women with heart disease has not been well elucidated. Methods and Results-Pregnant women with cardiac disease and healthy pregnant women (controls) were prospectively followed with maternal echocardiography and obstetrical ultrasound scans at baseline, third trimester, and postpartum. Fetal/neonatal complications (death, small-for-gestational-age or low birthweight, prematurity, respiratory distress syndrome, or intraventricular hemorrhage) comprised the primary study outcome. One hundred and twenty-seven women with cardiac disease and 45 healthy controls were enrolled. Neonatal events occurred in 28 pregnancies and were more frequent in the heart disease …