The Saviour of a Pregnant Woman With Fulminant Myocarditis ——Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation: A Case Report

INTRODUCTION There are no reports regarding a pregnant woman with fulminant myocarditis underwent Extracorporeal Membrane Oxygenation (ECMO). Hence, we report a case of successful ECMO treatment of fulminant myocarditis puerpera. CASE PRESENTATION A 32-year-old puerpera was admitted to our hospital with menopause for 7 months, fetal movement for 3 months and fever for 1 day. After admission, the patient's body temperature increased repeatedly, heart rate increased, and the whole process C-reactive protein increased rapidly. Considered a diagnosis of fulminant myocarditis. After antiviral and cardioprotective treatment, the heart function progressively worsened. Pregnancy was terminated, the newborn was intubated in the neonatal room for rescue after surgery, and ECMO treatment was given after the puerpera was transferred to the intensive care unit. Finally, the patient and the baby have been safely discharged from hospital. DISCUSSION ECMO can provide cardiac and respiratory support. Fulminant myocarditis is common in children, adolescents and particularly pregnant women who had the highest mortality rate. In the pregnant woman with fulminant myocarditis described in this report, antiviral treatment only transiently improved heart function and then heart function progressively worsened. After receiving ECMO therapy, the patient's cardiac function has improved markedly. The patient was then successfully weaned from ECMO. To our knowledge, this is the first report of pregnant woman in whom ECMO was part of the treatment for fulminant myocarditis. CONCLUSION We report a case of successful ECMO treatment of fulminant myocarditis puerpera. ECMO can be the treatment of choice for pregnant women with fulminant myocarditis.