Abnormal Placentation
BACKGROUND Print Section Listen Placenta accreta is a potentially life threatening condition that continues to challenge the medical field. The prevalence has been on a steady rise over the last…
Anesthesia for the Complicated Obstetric Patient
INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen A thorough understanding of the nature of the parturient’s pain is the first aspect in providing optimal obstetric anesthetic care. Once the biology and pathophysiology of…
Respiratory Emergencies During Pregnancy
INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Respiratory complications during pregnancy are not unusual and can be life threatening. A careful interview and physical examination, a chest x-ray, and an arterial blood analysis…
Fetal Considerations in the Critical Care Patient
INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Virtually any pathologic process which affects the mother has the potential to affect the fetus. The type and severity of fetal impact will depend on many…
Fluid and Electrolyte Therapy in the Critically Ill Obstetric Patient
INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen The ultimate goal of fluid and electrolyte therapy is to maintain a balance between the intracellular and extracellular compartments. This means that often, in caring for…
Advanced Cardiac Life Support of the Pregnant Patient
INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Cardiopulmonary arrest in pregnancy is uncommon, occurring only once in every 12,000 obstetrical admissions. Even at the busiest medical centers, this will only total a few…
Poisoning in Pregnancy
INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Poisoning is a morbid state produced by the exposure to a toxic agent (poison) that causes a functional disturbance and/or structural damage. Although the majority of…
Neurologic Emergencies During Pregnancy
INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Neurologic emergency in pregnancy is one that typically presents in a similar manifestation to the nonpregnant patient. The presentation, constellation of findings, and timing of symptoms…
Management of a Vaso-Occlusive Sickle Cell Crisis in Pregnancy
INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Hemoglobinopathies are inherited disorders that result in abnormal hemoglobin. Broadly speaking, the disorders can be classified as disorders of the quantity of hemoglobin such as thalassemia…
Human Immunodeficiency Virus in Pregnancy
INTRODUCTION Print Section Listen Much has changed in the care of patients who are human immunodeficiency virus (HIV) positive since the epidemic was first recognized in the early 1980s. Women…
