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| CASE REPORT |
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| Year : 2013 | Volume
: 3
| Issue : 1 | Page : 32-34 |
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Pregnancy and delivery in a parturient with liver transplant
AV Pyregov1, OI Andreysteva2, SI Khodova3
1 Department of Anesthesiology and Resuscitation, Federal State Budget Institution "Research Center for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Perinatology" of Ministry of Healthcare of the Russian Federation, Moscow, Russia
2 Liver Transplant Unit, N. V. Sklifosovsky Science and Research Institute of Emergency Medicine, Moscow, Russia
3 Department of Prevention and Treatment of Pregnancy Pathology, Federal State Budget Institution "Research Center for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Perinatology" of Ministry of Healthcare of the Russian Federation, Moscow, Russia
| Date of Web Publication | 1-Jul-2013 |
Correspondence Address:
A V Pyregov
Department of Anesthesiology and Resuscitation, Federal State Budget Institution "Research Center for Obstetrics, Gynecology and Perinatology," of Ministry of Healthcare of the Russian Federation Oparina st., 4, Moscow, 117997
Russia
 Source of Support: None, Conflict of Interest: None  | Check |
DOI: 10.4103/2249-4472.114287
The article presents a case of successful spontaneous vaginal delivery with the use of epidural analgesia in a patient with orthotopic liver transplant. The importance of the multidisciplinary approach is highlighted in management of such cases. Keywords: Epidural analgesia, liver transplantation, pregnancy, spontaneous delivery
How to cite this article:
Pyregov A V, Andreysteva O I, Khodova S I. Pregnancy and delivery in a parturient with liver transplant. J Obstet Anaesth Crit Care 2013;3:32-4 |
How to cite this URL:
Pyregov A V, Andreysteva O I, Khodova S I. Pregnancy and delivery in a parturient with liver transplant. J Obstet Anaesth Crit Care [serial online] 2013 [cited 2023 Mar 23];3:32-4. Available from: https://www.joacc.com/text.asp?2013/3/1/32/114287 |
| Introduction | |  |
The high rate of cesarean sections (up to 71%,) [1],[2],[3],[4] in liver recipients is associated with a higher incidence of obstetric complications during pregnancy. Safe and uneventful vaginal delivery is possible with growing experience in the management of parturients with organ transplant. We present a case of successful pregnancy and normal vaginal delivery with epidural analgesia in a liver transplant patient.
| Case Report | | |
A 26-year-old woman, gravida 2, para 1, was admitted to the hospital at 37 weeks of pregnancy with a cephalic presentation of the fetus. She also was diagnosed with preeclampsia, anemia of pregnancy, and retinal angiopathy following liver transplantation carried out 3 years before.
Earlier she had developed hepatic cirrhosis due to Wilson's disease. Her medical course was further complicated by development of fulminant hepatic failure (Grade III), portal hypertension, splenomegaly, thrombocytopenia, and esophageal varices (Grade I-II). As a result of these, 3 years prior to the present confinement the patient had successfully undergone orthotopic liver transplantation (OLT) and was discharged in a satisfactory condition. She continued to receive a triple immunosuppression regime (Cyclosporin, mycophenolate and prednisolone), which was gradually decreased to single immunosuppression regimen (Cyclosporine A). The patient was on regular follow-up on the out-patient basis.
Three years before OLT, she had a full term normal vaginal delivery. The present pregnancy after OLT was complicated by threatened abortion, anemia, thrombocytopenia, and moderate preeclampsia.
At 13-14 weeks of gestation, the patient had gradual increase in the alanine aminotransferase (ALT) and aspartate aminotransferase (AST) levels reaching up to 310-360 U/L. At the same time a decrease in Cyclosporin blood levels was observed, which was probably due to physiological changes associated with pregnancy and the resultant increase in drug volume of distribution. Cyclosporin dose was gradually increased from 200 mg to 350 mg daily leading to normalization of ALT and AST levels.
Antihypertensive therapy was started for a progressive increase in the blood pressure (160/100 mm of Hg) from 23 week of gestation. In addition, a genetic disposition of the blood coagulation system leading to the tendency of decrease of blood fibrinolytic activity associated with the genotype of activator inhibitor type one plasminogen, glycoprotein Ia, and glycoprotein IIIa was found. This polymorphism of thrombophilia genes was clinically irrelevant, thus, no changes to the current therapy were made.
At 38 week of gestation, as no symptoms and signs of the liver decompensation and portal hypertension were present, normal vaginal delivery was planned.
At 40 weeks, the patient went into acute labor, due to labor pains and at four cm cervical dilatation an epidural catheter was inserted for labor analgesia. The catheter was inserted under all aseptic precautions, at L 2 -L 3 level in left lateral position. 6 ml of ropivacaine hydrochloride 0.2% with fentanyl 50 μg was injected into epidural catheter followed by continuous infusion of ropivacaine 0.1% at a rate of 5 mL/h using an infusion pump. At cervical dilatation of seven cm, an amniotomy was performed. After 1 h and 40 min, patient experienced increased pain and a bolus of 6 ml of ropivacaine solution 0.2% was administered through the epidural catheter. A healthy male baby weighing 3445 g was born with an Apgar score of 8-9. The total duration of delivery was 6 h and 40 min, 1 st stage- 6 h and 10 min, 2 nd stage- 15 min, 3 rd stage- 15 min.
Oxytocin was administered as an intravenous infusion starting at the end of the first stage of labor and was continued during the other two stages and early post-partum period. During the labor, 1000 mg of Tranexamic acid and 120 mg of Prednisolone were intravenously administered due to a moderate thrombocytopenia (113 × 10 9 /L). The total blood loss was 400 mL. The epidural catheter was subsequently removed 3 h after the delivery.
In the post-partum period patient continued to receive antibiotic (cephalosporins) for 5 days, suppression of lactation, continued immunodepression by Cyclosporine A 150 mg twice a day, acetylsalicylic acid 100 mg daily was re-introduced and antihypertensive therapy was restarted. After the transplantation surgery, the patient was on acetylsalicylic acid and immunosuppressive therapy for life term. During the pregnancy, she took 50 mg of acetylsalicylic acid daily that was withdrawn 5 days before the planned delivery. The patient was discharged on the post-partum day eight.
| Discussion | | |
The majority of patients who make it through the initial months after the liver transplant without developing chronic rejection live a normal life. [1],[2],[5],[6],[7] Female patients might get pregnant and deliver healthy full-term babies. [8]
The optimal time for conception is generally after 1 year post-transplant when the graft rejection risk decreases and the possibility of a favorable outcome increases for the mother and the baby. [3],[4],[9]
The present-day immunosuppressants have no teratogenic activity thus, allowing normal pregnancy in recipients. [10] During the pregnancy increased volume of distribution warrants an increase in the dose of immunosuppressants and frequent monitoring of blood levels of the drugs using the biochemical blood assay. Inadequate drug levels may augment the risk of acute rejection of the graft during the pregnancy. Current clinical practice provides different immunosuppression treatment regimens. In the present case, according to the hospital guidelines, the patient was put on the cyclosporine monotherapy 3 months after the transplantation surgery with the subsequent control of blood cyclosporine level before and during pregnancy. 20 days before the delivery the blood concentrations of cyclosporine were low, so its dose was increased from 300 mg/day to 350 mg/day. It was later reduced to 250 mg/daily (according to the drug blood concentration) in the post-partum period due to removal of volume of distribution.
The main risks in this group of parturients are related to the complications of pregnancy and delivery such as hypertension, preeclampsia, renal dysfunction, bacterial and viral infections, premature labor, fetal growth retardation syndrome and intrapartum and post-partum hemorrhage. Our patient developed a thrombocytopenia; in order to prevent a hemorrhage, tranexamic acid and prednisolone were administered.
During the course of pregnancy in such patients there is a higher possibility to develop cholestasis and liver dysfunction. In the present case, the patient experienced moderate preeclampsia responsive to conventional treatment.
A higher incidence of maternal mortality and venous thromboembolism has been also reported in patients after successful liver transplant. [1],[2],[3],[4] We detected some minor hemostasis abnormalities in the present case, thereby, as a preventive measure, the patient received acetylsalicylic acid before and after the delivery.
The main indications for cesarean section in such parturients are fetal distress, breech presentation and fetal growth retardation, prematurity. The higher incidences of prematurity and increased maternal and perinatal mortality are observed in liver transplant recipients compared to the general population. Neither liver graft dysfunction nor any pregnancy complications were present in this case allowing the normal delivery at term. The management of pregnancy in a liver transplant patient needs a multidisciplinary approach where the prime responsibility, complementary to obstetricians-gynecologists, anesthesiologists and transplant surgeons, involves intensivists, cardiologists, and endocrinologists. [5],[6],[7],[8],[9],[10] In conclusion, parturients with transplant liver can safely undergo vaginal delivery. Epidural analgesia can be administered for the labor pain relief if the hemostatic profile is nearly normal.
| References | | |
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