Neonatal and maternal outcomes of pregnancies with a fetal diagnosis of congenital heart disease using a standardized delivery room management protocol.

Abstract

We sought to determine if fetuses with prenatally diagnosed congenital heart disease (CHD) were more likely to undergo cesarean delivery in the setting of a non-reassuring fetal heart rate tracing (NRFHT) and to determine if those fetuses were more likely to have a fetal acidosis. A retrospective cohort study of neonates prenatally diagnosed with CHD from August 2010 to July 2016. The control group consisted of gestational age matched controls without CHD. Each group consisted of 143 patients. The most common reason for cesarean delivery was a NRFHT (control 31% vs CHD 35%, p = 0.67). Fetal acidosis was a rare outcome occurring in only five controls (3.5%) and 11 cases (7.7%) (p = 0.12). These findings demonstrate that with multidisciplinary care coordination, fetuses with a prenatal diagnosis of CHD have similar cesarean rates, labor and delivery management, and delivery room compromise as healthy fetuses.