TITLE:
The Outcomes of Pregnancy in Patients with Cirrhosis in a Low-Income Country
AUTHORS:
Kounpièlimè Sosthène Somda, Ousséni Sinon, Lawagoulé Joseph Emile Ky, Toussaint Vebamba, Aboubacar Coulibaly, Christiane Bere, Abel Sawadogo, Arsène Roger Sombie
KEYWORDS:
Cirrhosis, Pregnancy, Complications, Burkina Faso
JOURNAL NAME:
Open Journal of Gastroenterology,
Vol.15 No.1,
January
22,
2025
ABSTRACT: Pregnancy in cirrhotic-woman is a rare event [1] [2]. It causes particular risks related to liver disease and its treatments, with maternal and fetal consequences. The largest reported series to date is by Welton’s with 13 cases [3]. In Africa, few cases were reported. The purpose of this work was to report the hepatic and obstetric complications in pregnant women in Burkina Faso, a low-income country. It was a descriptive cross-sectional study with retrospective data collection covering the period from January 1, 2013 to December 31, 2023. All the women diagnosed with cirrhosis through clinical basis, biological and imaging arguments associated with a pregnancy confirmed by ultrasound were included. A total of ten women were included in the study. Among them, two were known cirrhotics and were being followed. In the other eight cases, cirrhosis was discovered during pregnancy. Eight women were HBsAg positive and two of them had only the contact marker of hepatitis B virus (anti- HBc antibody). The evolution was, ascitic decompensation in nine cases, digestive hemorrhage due to rupture of esophageal varices in two cases, nine cases of anemia, two cases of ascitic fluid infection and one case of conjunctival jaundice. Two cases of probable hepatocellular carcinoma were noted with one case of extensive portal thrombosis. The evolution was without maternal complications in one case. Regarding fetal and neonatal complications, there were three cases of hypotrophy, one case of prematurity, one case of acute neonatal distress, two cases of fetal death in utero and one case of fetal tachycardia. Four pregnancies had a favorable evolution without any complications. The association of cirrhosis and pregnancy is an uncommon event, and maternal and fetal complications can occur, making this pregnancy a high-risk pregnancy.