In India, a woman and her baby survived a rare case of ectopic pregnancy. The child developed in its mother’s ovary without any doctor noticing.
- In India, a pregnant woman and her baby survived an ovarian ectopic pregnancy.
- The baby had grown in the ovary, not the womb.
- Ovarian ectopic pregnancies represent between 0.5% and 3% of ectopic pregnancies.
This is an extremely rare case that could have had a fatal outcome for the mother and her newborn. It is reported in the journal Journal of Obstetrics and Gynecology Researchechoed by the blog Biomedical Realities.
In India, a 35-year-old woman, already a mother of three children, was admitted to Jodhpur Hospital (State of Rajasthan) for light vaginal bleeding. Pregnant, she exceeded the term of her pregnancy by two weeks.
The doctors on site decide to perform an MRI, which then reveals an ectopic ovarian pregnancy. Also called ectopic pregnancy, ovarian ectopic pregnancy occurs when the ovary is the site of implantation and therefore the fetus develops in the ovary. Medical imaging here shows that the gestational sac has developed in the peritoneal cavity, while the uterus is empty and of normal size.
A high-risk birth
To deliver the child, the medical team decides to perform a laparotomy, a surgical procedure that involves opening the abdomen by making an incision in the midline. The operation reveals the presence of an amniotic sac in the peritoneal cavity in which the newborn is located. The latter is extracted alive from the gestational sac and weighs 3.1 kg. There is also the placenta, attached to the left ovary, which has been supplied by the large ovarian vessels.
The intervention caused a major uterine hemorrhage. To save the mother, a total removal of the uterus was performed. The woman also received a blood transfusion.
This exceptional delivery fortunately ended well for the mother and her child, who were able to leave the hospital five days after the birth. Six months later, they are both in perfect health.
According to the Réalités Biomédicales blog, ectopic ovarian pregnancies represent between 0.5% and 3% of ectopic pregnancies. The first known case dates from 1862. A total of fourteen cases have been reported in the international medical literature, of which only five were live births.
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