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Medics cry as ‘miracle’ woman awakes from pregnancy drama
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MEDICAL staff at a city hospital wept when a woman regained consciousness after suffering a rare and often fatal pregnancy complication.
A team of more than 40 medics at the Shanghai First Maternity and Infant Hospital had battled to save the life of the woman, whose name was not released.
The 31-year-old, who was 38 weeks pregnant, was brought in on Saturday with amniotic fluid embolism, or AFE, which can cause an allergic reaction resulting in multiple organ failure.
But following emergency treatment that included a cesarean section delivery and being given 53 units of blood — including full blood, plasma and blood products — she awoke on Sunday.
“It’s a medical miracle and all the medical staff cried when she woke up and talked to her family,” said Dr Liu Ming, deputy director of the hospital’s obstetric department.
“Not every pregnant woman with AFE can be saved. It requires teamwork and support from all medical facilities and health authority,” added Liu.
The woman was removed from a respirator yesterday and will remain under strict monitoring as there are risks of complications, said hospital officials.
She gave birth to a baby boy, who was delivered starved of oxygen due to his mother’s body shutting down. He is said to be in critical condition.
AFE involves amniotic fluid, fetal cells, hair or other debris entering the mother’s bloodstream.
The woman felt abdominal pains in the early hours of Saturday and was taken to hospital on 5pm where she was kept for her child to be delivered.
But five minutes after her waters broke she lost consciousness.
Realizing the seriousness of the situation, medical staff took immediate action.
“When I arrived, she was not breathing, had no heartbeat and her blood pressure was hardly measurable,” said anesthetist Dr Sun Xiaolin.
“We gave cardio-pulmonary resuscitation and a cesarean section delivery took place on the ward bed as there was no time to send her to surgery.
“We had to try to save the baby and removing the baby was also vital if we were to save the mother,” added Sun.
After treatment, the baby was transferred to Shanghai Children’s Hospital.
The 40-strong medical team treated hemorrhaging and allergic reactions in the mother, joined for consultations by experts from other leading hospitals.
Liu highlighted the achievement.
“Even in Shanghai, which has China’s lowest mortality rate for women giving birth and similar capabilities to Western countries, the mortality rate from AFE is over 60 percent,” said Liu.
Earlier this month, a woman in the central province of Hunan died of AFE and her family blamed the hospital.
The incidence of AFE is around 4 to 6 in every 100,000 births.
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