Medical Case Reports

Management of a Pregnant Woman with Idiopathic Interstitial Pneumonia Accompanied by Secondary Pulmonary Hypertension: Case Report and Literature Review

Idiopathic interstitial pneumonias (IIPs) typically occur in the fifth and sixth decades, and thus are uncommon in the child-bearing age group. We herein report an extremely rare case of a pregnant woman with IIP accompanied by secondary pulmonary hypertension that had a successful cesarean delivery. A 36-year-old primigravida woman was referred to our Obstetrics department at 6 weeks of gestation. Seven years ago, she had a dry cough and moderate dyspnea, and was diagnosed with non-specific interstitial pneumonia (NSIP), a subtype of IIP. At 11 weeks of gestation, spirometry showed a vital capacity of 1.89 L (60% of predicted). An arterial blood gas analysis showed PaO₂ of 77.2 mmHg and oxygen saturation of 95% in breathing room air at rest. An echocardiogram revealed mild pulmonary hypertension; systolic pulmonary artery blood pressure (PABP) of 44 mmHg. Fetal growth and amniotic fluid volume were normal. Our management plan was to maintain oxygen saturation at more than 95% of oxygen saturation and systolic PABP at less than 50 mmHg. Oxygen therapy was initiated at 13 weeks of gestation because of dyspnea at rest. At 28 weeks of gestation, an echocardiogram showed severe pulmonary hypertension with systolic PABP of 64 mmHg. Therefore, we performed cesarean section at 30 weeks of gestation. The newborn was a male weighing 1.452 g with Apgar scores of 6 and 7 at 1 min and 5 min, respectively. Although the patient’s post-operative course was uneventful, she was discharged on a regimen of oxygen therapy. The effects of pregnancy on IIPs remain unclear because of its extreme rarity. In the management of pregnant women with IIPs accompanied by secondary pulmonary hypertension, the maintenance of systolic PABP of less than 50 mmHg on an echocardiogram may be effective.

Author(s):

Satoshi Ohira, Ryoichi Asaka, Yasuhiro Tanaka, Chiho Fuseya, Hirofumi Ando, Norihiko Kikuchi, Tsutomu Miyamoto, Makoto Kanai and Tanri Shiozawa

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