UK Cardiomyopathy Pregnancy Cohort Reports No Maternal Deaths, but Cardiac Complications Occurred

A prospective observational study published in BJOG examined pregnancy outcomes among women with a prepregnancy diagnosis of cardiomyopathy. Cases were reported monthly through the United Kingdom Obstetric Surveillance System from June 2021 to May 2024. Researchers identified 210 pregnancies in 209 women and assessed obstetric, neonatal and cardiovascular outcomes, aiming to establish whether outcomes differed by cardiomyopathy type.

Dilated cardiomyopathy accounted for 103 women (49.3%), hypertrophic cardiomyopathy for 40 (19.1%), previous peripartum cardiomyopathy for 24 (11.5%), and arrhythmogenic right ventricular cardiomyopathy for 11 (5.3%). Another 31 women (14.8%) had other cardiomyopathies. No maternal deaths were reported, but 10% of women had documented heart failure and 8% had a documented arrhythmia during pregnancy. Median gestation at delivery among 206 singleton pregnancies was 38.1 weeks. Among 180 babies with recorded admission data, 36 (20%) were admitted to a neonatal unit.

These findings provide contemporary UK data for pregnancy counselling in women with established cardiomyopathy, while showing that cardiac complications remain relevant despite the absence of maternal deaths. The abstract does not report subtype-specific outcome comparisons, disease severity or delivery-mode results. Incomplete neonatal admission data and the observational design also limit interpretation; the full text was unavailable for assessment.