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This is a rare but serious (mortality
rate more than 80%) complication of labour and the immediate postpartum
period, usually after manual removal of placenta, caused by amniotic
fluid infusion into the maternal circulation.
Classic pathologic findings include fetal
squamous cells and mucin, lanugo hair, and vernix caseosa fat in the
maternal pulmonary microcirculation.
The syndrome is characterized by sudden
severe dyspnea, cyanosis, hypotensive
shock followed by seizure and
coma.
If the patient survives the initial
crisis,
pulmonary edema occurs and disseminated intravascular
coagulation may ensue due to release of thrombogenic substances from
amniotic fluid.
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Amniotic fluid embolism. Diagnostic criteria in two fatal cases.
Medicina (B Aires). 2008;68(1):59-61.
Amniotic fluid
embolism still remains an important cause of maternal mortality. We
present information obtained by echocardiography and right cardiac
catheterization of two patients who developed amniotic fluid
embolism and died from shock and disseminated intravascular
coagulation despite intensive medical treatment. Although the
pathophysiology remains controversial, amniotic fluid embolism can
be presumptively diagnosed and managed with hemodynamic values and
echocardiography.
Amniotic fluid
embolism after blunt abdominal trauma.
Resuscitation.
2007 Oct;75(1):180-3.
Amniotic
fluid embolism (AFE) is a rare, but potentially fatal complication
of pregnancy, with an incidence between 1 in 8000 and 1 in 80,000
pregnancies. The pathogenesis is not fully understood, but the
generally accepted belief is that amniotic fluid enters the mother's
circulation, most commonly via tears in the lower uterine segment.
In the fluid there are substances with pro-inflammatory, vasospastic
and pro-coagulative properties. AFE after blunt trauma is very rare,
only described a few times in the literature. We report a case of
fatal AFE after probable minor blunt trauma to the abdomen and give
a review of the literature. |
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