Highly Specialized Pregnancy Care With a Fontan Circulation

It's possible to have a healthy pregnancy and a successful birth if you're living with a Fontan circulation.

If you want to have a baby, it's important to talk to an adult congenital heart disease (ACHD) specialist, because pregnancy can be risky. Your doctor will talk with you about your specific condition and the impact a pregnancy may have on your health.

If you and your doctor think pregnancy is a possibility, you'll need highly specialized and coordinated care. You will work closely with your ACHD doctor and maternal-fetal medicine teams throughout your pregnancy and in the months after you give birth.

Pregnancy After a Fontan Procedure

Researchers, including several from Cincinnati Children’s Heart Institute, have studied pregnancies in women with a Fontan circulation. The findings include the following:

• It is possible to be pregnant and have a successful birth after a Fontan operation.
• Losing the baby early in pregnancy occurs in almost half of women.
• Heart rhythm problems affect approximately 1 in 10 pregnant women.
• Heart failure affects 1 in 25 women having a pregnancy after a Fontan operation.
• Bleeding after birth commonly affected these mothers. This needs to be carefully monitored.

If you'd like to learn more about  pregnancy after a Fontan procedure, contact us to schedule a consultation.