Heart Surgery, Pregnancy, Labor And Baby Delivery… Can You Help Shannon?

I am 34 years old. I had valve replacement approximately 7 months ago. I have been advised, as I was before surgery, to not have any more children. Apparently when you are pregnant the volume of blood in your body increases dramatically. I had an echo when I was 32 weeks pregnant with my second child. I went from mild to moderate regurg. I had the surgery about 3 years after this. I would suggest this women definately have a cesarean section to deliver and ask some serious questions about what being pregnant will do to her valves. If she chooses the mechanical valve I do not believe she could become pregnant due to the coumadin. If she chooses a non mechanical valve, chances are she will need to have replacement surgery again sometime in her life. I guess the question would be if she wants to take a few years of the life of her valve, as you now know a child is probably worth it!! By the time she would need another replacement it could very well be a minimally invasive procedure.

Hello Shannon,

I was 13 when I had my aortic replaced and I’m currently on blood thinners. I was 23 when I gave birth to my healthy daughter who is now 17yrs. I had to change my meds to hyprine and take shots in my stomach for the 9 months but everything else went just like normal. No C-section here because it has a higher risk of infection.

I hope this helps and good luck.

Margaret

Hello Shannon,

I am 35 yrs. old and had my aortic valve replaced on November 10, 2008 w/bovine tissue and also ended up with a pacemaker. I had annual EKGs since I was 13 and when I was engaged at the age of 28, my doctor told me that I should consider adopting and that I should not get pregnant due to my narrowed valve and regurg. Just has my husband and I were starting the adoption process, my annual indicated It was time for the surgery. My cardiologist and surgeon have both indicated I should be able to get pregnant and have a healthy pregnancy with my new valve and also my pacemaker. I go in for the 6 month follow up and pacemaker check in June and will talk to my doctor more about it at that time. I am giving my body at least a year to recover before we do anything, pregnancy or adoption.

Thank you so much ladies!!!! It really makes a difference to hear that other women have been in this same situation.

The surgeon is optimistic about repairing my valve (so no blood thinners), however, if it needs to be replaced it will be done with a tissue valve.

Future surgery is already a definite, due to my age and the life expectancy of the valves.

Thank you once again for shedding some light on this for me. It is very much appreciated!

I think at this time pregnancy in women with congenital heart disease, repaired or not, is much more common. The risk to mother or fetus may be higher than for someone without heart disease, but it is certainly manageable with mostly good outcomes – for those with congenital bicuspid aortic valves and thoracic aorta aneurysms, repaired. It seems very important to be managed by a team including perinatologist (high risk pregnancy doctor) and cardiologist. C section is not necessarily the way to go – there are many fluid shifts and blood loss risks involved in
c sections. Listen to your doctors, make sure they are experienced, and that you deliver in a facility that can handle any issues that may arise.
Please accept this disclaimer that this is not meant as medical advice.
Good luck, best wishes.

Hi, I have been living with mitral valve prolapse since i was 8, and i’m 33 this year. Despite having it and was advised to be cautious of pregnancy, i was pregnant and delivered a healthy baby boy when i was 29 through normal delivery with the help of epidural to minimise the presusure to the heart.

I agree with Terry that “The risk to mother or fetus may be higher than for someone without heart disease, but it is certainly manageable with mostly good outcomes”.

I was told by my doctor that i need to schedule for a valve replacement next year, and could not pregnant after that.Hence. i’m working (hard) this year on another baby (as advised by doctor) and hopefully it will be smooth running for me.

I’m a 31 year old mitral valve replacement patient. I have two healthy boys. I was told that it was risky, but doable to have a baby. I had to take shots during the majority of my pregnancies. I was in and out of the hospital with irregular blood thinner levels. I had to see a high risk doctor every 2 weeks the entire pregnancy with frequent ultrasounds.
The second baby tore my cervix a little and I ended up not clotting very well and needing a couple of units of blood. If I could go back and change anything, it would be to have my second baby induced. My labor came on so quickly that I couldn’t have an epidural. OUCH!! The doctor told me AFTER my second baby that it would be catastrophic for me to get pregnant again…We’re not planning on any more children, but the two I have were definitely worth it all.

I HAD A VALVE REPLACEMENT 8 WEEKS AFTER MY BABY WAS BORN, MY BABY WAS FINE THANK GOD, BUT MY PREGNANCY WAS TOTALLY HIGH RISK. I HAD EVERY IMAGINABLE MACHINE ATTACH TO ME. I VISITED MY CARDIOLOGIST DURING PREGNANCY, HE ADVISED NO LONG LABOUR AND TO REST A LOT, I WAS GIVEN AN EPIDURAL AFTER 12 HOURS OF LABOUR AND THEY TRIED TO ELIMINATE AS MUCH PAIN AS POSSIBLE BECAUSE THE PAIN WOULD CAUSE MY PRESSURE TO INCREASE AND THE RISK OF HIGH PRESSURE WAS A SERIOUS PROBLEM, BUT THEY CUT ME FROM FRONT TO BACK, AND EVERYTHING WAS FINE

My sister had also changed mitral valve in year 2004 but dr. advished her that can not have baby .
So please give some suggestion about this that in future can they have any baby.

I had my Aortic valve replaced and the base rebuilt when I was 16. (Mechanical Valve) I am on Coumadin and was advised not to have children, and told it was possible but expensive. I went on heparin shots when I became pregnant in 2004. I was a “outpatient” in the hospital in my hometown so I could go in every day and have my blood levels checked. My Cardiologist has an awesome PA who called me and adjusted my meds every day if needed. I had frequent ultrasounds for the first 4 months, but doctors backed off of that when all was normal. Other than a very bruised prego belly, the only scare was when my blood pressure spiked (which resulted in an ambulance ride). All was OK. I had a C section and was taken off all blood thinners (of coarse) before the surgery. My daughter is 6 now and definitely worth every second of the pregnancy! (Though I am nervous about having another- I’m a Mom now.) The only lasting damage that could have possibly been caused by the experience is the weakening of the bones in my spine. It has not been studied fully that I am aware of- but there is a theory that high doses of heparin can weaken your bones.
Good luck to your Sister!

I am a 33 year old, 2 time heart surgery patient. First time was in Australia when I was 19, Ross procedure aortic valve replacement. This procedure was chosen so that I would be albe to have children and would not have to use blood thinning medication.
24 weeks into my first pregnancy with my son I was told by my cardiologist that I had an aortic aneurysm and was told to be very aware and careful. I had weekly ultrasounds until he was born via cesarian. 10 months later, at 31 years of age, I had to have valve reparation (was to be a complete replacement with bovine but they found it could be fixed when they were in there) and an aortic root graft (Gelweave Valsalva Vascutec prosthesis). This was almost 2 years ago. Now I am pregnant with my second child and really would like to have a VBAC. My cardiologist in Sweden said this should be possible, we will see.

hi, im 24 and i had a mitral vlave replacement 4 years ago it was my 3rd heart operation since then i have regular palpatation. i took warfarin 8mg a day but my partner and i decided to try for a baby. my dr took me off warfarin and put me on fragmin injection just over 2 months ago and ive found out that im about 6 weeks pregnant. i wasnt due to see my heart specalist for a few months yet but im now being referred to him to be seen early. this is my first pregnancy i dont know what to expect. can any one help. x

I am 38 and have had my mitro valve replacement(mechanical valve) since 2005. I’m going through some sort of phase in reference to wnating to become a mother. I have heard one doctor with positive responses about me becoming pregnant, however the others are no so positive. We are wanting to become pregnant at this time, and I am/was so confused on what to do. After reading some of your posts I feel more confidant. I am on warfin (coumadin, I know I can handle the heprin stomach injections throughout the pregnancy. I just know prayer and faith will work out for me. My first step is finding me a good high risk doctor in Tennessee or surrounding states.

Hi Nikki,

I was wondering how are you doing with your pregnancy. I read your post, Emily and Charity ad now I want my own child even more. I always thought that women with our issues were not successful with having children, however that seems to not be true. Congrats to all of you and thanks for everyone’s posts…. this has helped me to relieve some of the stree, and I guess internet searches can be a big help..

Hi Im 36 and had mitral valve replacement a year ago and I just found out I am pregnant and now Im afraid can some please help me I need to know what to do.

Hi Shannon,

I was wondering how things turned out for you. Did you end up getting pregnant? Were there any complications?

My situation is somewhat similar to yours. I am twenty six and I recently found out that I was born with a bicuspal aortic valve. I never knew this until about a month ago. I have severe stenosis and mild regurg and am going to have my valve replaced in about a month or so. I am getting a porcine or bovine valve because my fiance and I desperately want children after we get married in January. We want a big family and, after having children, I will go with a mechanical valve when my porcine valve begins to go.

Please let me know how things went for you. My cardiologist and surgeon are very optimistic, but it’s all still so new to me.

Hi ladies!

I have already had aortic valve replacement twice. The first time I was 20 (2000), I contracted Endocarditis on my aortic valve (I was born with stenosis)! My valve was replaced with a tissue valve because I wanted to have children. Well I only got married last year, and at the beginning of this year I knew I wasn’t feeling well…it turned out my replacement valve was on its last legs ( it lasted 10 years and 7 months, so I was happy)!

So in July this year I had replacement surgery AGAIN and chose to have another tissue valve. Why? So that I wouldn’t be on anti-coagulants. (these have to carefully monitored during pregnancy)!

Why am I writing all this… Well I wanted you all to know I have certainly thought a lot about this topic. I have researched, asked questions and thought long and hard.

Is it possible to have a baby after aortic valve replacement? My surgeon and cardiologists said yes! Of course each individual case is different, but the fact is yes it is.

When you’re pregnant your blood volume increases, this is why you need to heavily monitored.

My advice: (please note, I’m not a cardiologist, I’m just going off my own experiences.

1) Talk to you cardiologist. Find out what state you valve is in before you put it under any extra pressure.
2) Do I need to have extra monitoring while pregnant? Yes. You will need to be watched carefully.
3) Find out about your own possible risks, we’re all different. Any pregnancy carries risks, so don’t over worry, talk to the experts.
4) if you have a mechanical valve, you must get in touch with your cardiologist NOW if you’re newly pregnant. Your anti-coagulants doses etc will need to be changed. Warfarin can damage your child, so they will change it to heparin most likely. Again I’m no expert, but I do know you MUST have this looked at. Tell your doc right away. BUT don’t panic, they know what their doing.
5) if you have a tissue valve you are most likely not on warfarin, still, it is important that if you have just found out you’re pregnant that you tell you doc/cardiologist. They will want to check you over.

I have not had a baby yet, so you might think what do I know, but I have done the research as I want one (or two if I can). I’m 31 (tomorrow) and 8 weeks post second aortic valve replacement, and my surgeon is happy for me to become pregnant. I will do to. I’m just looking into how long I should leave it (a few months yet)!

So, hopefully those that were under the impression woman shouldn’t get pregnant after heart surgery, they can, but talk to your cardiologist…each case is different.

Do have hope, we can all have hope?

Do be careful. Plan and ensure you stay fit and know what to do to look after yourself.

Do remember there are plenty of women in our shoes who have successfully had children!

I’m going to keep you updated with my blog on my progress. I talk to the docs a lot, and although my case may be different to yours, it will at least let you know one situation.

So yes, I have aortic valve replacement twice, I’m 30 and I will try for a baby! I will have to have my valve replaced again, next time it will be mechanical. This is my chance and I’m going to take it!

I wish you all the very best. Keep savvy and look after yourselves!

Rae xx