Though she had been on regular follow-up at a government hospital, her critical condition required immediate advanced intervention
Image for representational purpose only. Photo Courtesy: istock
Doctors in Kolkata have successfully treated a 32-year-old female patient from Howrah, in her fourth pregnancy at over 35 weeks with a history of three uncomplicated previous deliveries, with an emergency C-section.
She was brought to Manipal Hospital in Salt Lake and admitted under the care of Dr Nandini Chakrabarti, consultant Obstetrician, with an acute and severe onset of dyspnea (sudden and severe shortness of breath). Though she had been on regular follow-up at a government hospital, her critical condition required immediate advanced intervention.
The patient had a history of tubercular pericardial effusion (a rare condition where tuberculosis causes fluid, the builds around the heart). She had developed pulmonary tuberculosis in 2019 and had been on anti-tubercular treatment since August 2025.
Her heart was found to be very weak, pumping at only about 30 per cent of its normal strength, with poor overall movement of the heart muscle as seen on echocardiography.
On admission, the patient was critically ill, and the obstetric evaluation revealed severe growth restriction and evidence of fatal distress.
Given the urgency of the situation, the obstetric, cardiology, gynecology, and anaesthesiology teams swiftly coordinated for joint intervention.
The patient was transferred to the ICU for stabilisation. After in-depth counselling of the relatives of the patient, a decision was made for emergency Caesarean section.
The patient was taken to the operation theatre under advanced life support. Within 15 minutes of the emergency Lower Segment Caesarean Section (LSCS) under general anaesthesia, a baby weighing 2.1 kg was delivered and handed over to the neonatal team.
The presence of thick, greenish amniotic fluid showed that the baby was in distress. The baby, who required resuscitation and ventilation support initially, was admitted to NICU with Respiratory Distress Syndrome (RDS) but improved later and was weaned off ventilation by the second day.
All this while the mother was kept on intubation overnight to prevent cardiac decompensation and managed on salt-restricted diet and fluid restriction. She was successfully extubated the next day. Both mother and child stabilised by the sixth postoperative day and were discharged on the tenth day of admission.
Dr Chakrabarti, who managed the case, said, "It was very complex managing this case since the mother was fighting a rare TB-related cardiac condition in addition to severe foetal compromise. Timely decision-making and smooth coordination between our obstetrics, cardiology, anesthesiology, and neonatal departments helped us stabilise the mother, deliver the baby safely, and save both lives."
Subscribe today by clicking the link and stay updated with the latest news!" Click here!
