Heterotopic pregnancy: Still a diagnostic puzzle

Spontaneously conceived heterotopic pregnancy with abdominal pregnancy implanted on the vesicouterine pouch: A case report and literature review

We report the case of a 36-year-old woman with spontaneously conceived heterotopic pregnancy with abdominal pregnancy. She visited the hospital at 5 weeks and 4 days of gestation and transvaginal ultrasonography revealed a normal intrauterine pregnancy. Two days later, she was urgently transported to the hospital due to extreme abdominal pain. Emergent laparotomy was performed to investigate the cause of massive intraperitoneal bleeding, which was confirmed to have been due to an abdominal pregnancy that implanted on the vesicouterine pouch. The hematic mass, including chorionic villi, was successfully removed from the peritoneum. The subsequent course of the intrauterine pregnancy was uneventful and a healthy baby was born at term. To the best of our knowledge, this is an extremely rare case report of a spontaneously conceived heterotopic abdominal pregnancy, in which the intrauterine pregnancy showed a successful outcome despite the collapse of the abdominal pregnancy at a very early stage.

Heterotopic pregnancy

Heterotopic pregnancy is a life-threatening condition. A recent case at our institution prompted a systematic review of the literature from 2005 to 2010. In the majority (71%) of cases reviewed, risk factors for a heterotopic pregnancy were present. However, in several instances (33%), previous sonographic reports of a normal intrauterine pregnancy gave false reassurance. These results highlight the complexity of diagnosis. In addition, our findings were compared with two previous reviews covering cases from 1971 to 2004. This comparison highlighted two important trends: first, the increasing role of ultrasound in the definitive diagnosis of a heterotopic pregnancy, and second, the development of conservative approaches to management. Medical knowledge and technology may be improving, but ultimately, even in the presence of a known intrauterine pregnancy, the simple dictum 'think ectopic' must not be forgotten.