Fetal ventricular tachycardia secondary to long QT syndrome treated with maternal intravenous magnesium: case report and review of the literature

Abstract

Ventricular tachycardia is a very rare fetal arrhythmia accounting for fewer than 2% of fetal tachycardias. We describe a fetus presenting at 30 weeks' gestation with ventricular tachycardia at a rate of 220 beats per min and fetal hydrops. The tachycardia was unresponsive to flecainide but was controlled within 12 h by an intravenous infusion of magnesium to the mother. Despite rapid control of the arrhythmia the fetus developed severe periventricular leukomalacia before birth for which a poor neurological prognosis was given. The baby was delivered preterm at 32 weeks' gestation and died on the sixth day after birth. Long QT syndrome was identified postnatally on the electrocardiogram, and was confirmed by genetic testing which showed a mutation in the KCNH2 gene (p.T613M).