Key result
Multidisciplinary labor induction achieves successful vaginal delivery in ALCAPA despite transient postpartum MR worsening.
Why the study?
ALCAPA carries a high risk of myocardial ischemia and sudden death during pregnancy, making the management of asymptomatic adult-type ALCAPA diagnosed during pregnancy a challenging clinical scenario.
Case Report (n=1)
Multidisciplinary planning and continuous hemodynamic monitoring can enable safe vaginal delivery in select patients with asymptomatic adult-type ALCAPA, though dynamic peripartum volume shifts require serial echocardiographic monitoring.
May enable safe vaginal delivery in select asymptomatic ALCAPA with multidisciplinary monitoring; hypothesis-generating and warrants serial peripartum echocardiography.
Background Anomalous origin of the left coronary artery from the pulmonary artery (ALCAPA) is a rare congenital defect that poses a significant risk of myocardial ischemia and sudden death, especially during the hemodynamic stresses of pregnancy. Although surgical correction is standard, the management of asymptomatic adult‐type ALCAPA diagnosed during pregnancy remains a high‐stakes clinical challenge. Case Presentation We report the case of a 36‐year‐old multiparous woman with incidentally diagnosed adult‐type ALCAPA during her third pregnancy. Serial echocardiography revealed moderate mitral regurgitation. The pregnancy was complicated by superimposed preeclampsia at 33 weeks. A dedicated multidisciplinary team implemented a tailored plan for labor induction at 37 weeks in a hybrid operating room, employing epidural analgesia and continuous hemodynamic monitoring. The patient underwent a successful vaginal delivery of a healthy infant. Intriguingly, mitral regurgitation transiently worsened to severe on postpartum Day 3 but significantly improved to mild by Day 7, correlating with resolution of the pregnancy‐induced volume load. Coronary CTA postpartum confirmed the diagnosis. Discussion Multidisciplinary planning enables safe vaginal delivery in select ALCAPA pregnancies. Dynamic peripartum changes in mitral regurgitation underline the role of volume shifts and the need for serial echocardiography to guide management and time definitive surgery.
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Zhao et al. (2026) conducted a case report in Anomalous origin of the left coronary artery from the pulmonary artery (ALCAPA) (n=1). Multidisciplinary tailored plan for labor induction was evaluated on Successful vaginal delivery. A multidisciplinary tailored plan for labor induction enabled a successful vaginal delivery in a 36-year-old woman with ALCAPA, despite transient postpartum worsening of mitral regurgitation.
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