Undiagnosed sub-valvular aortic stenosis with an associated Ventricular Septal Defect (VSD) presenting late in a multi-parous woman

BACKGROUND: Sub-valvular aortic stenosis is a rare disorder that has a prevalence of 6.5% of all adult congenital heart diseases. The hemodynamic changes that occur in pregnancy with the resultant increase in cardiac output may not well be tolerated by a pregnant woman with sub-valvular aortic stenosis. CASE PRESENTATION: We report the case of a 34-year-old para 7 (6 alive + 1 dead) who has been experiencing intermittent episodes of easy fatigability on moderate exertion since childhood and had survived 6 prior pregnancies. During her last pregnancy, she started experiencing chest pain, palpitations, dyspnea, orthopnea, and pre-syncope at 36 weeks and had a caesarean section at 37 weeks on account of fetal distress. The post-delivery cardiac evaluation showed severe sub-valvular Aortic stenosis and a ventricular septal defect. CONCLUSION: Sub-valvular Aortic stenosis may progress slowly in adults and may be tolerated during pregnancy. Despite the rare presentation and contraindication of pregnancy in such a patient, she extraordinarily survived the pregnancy with a healthy baby. Routine cardiovascular assessment during prenatal, ante-natal and post-natal care is highly advocated particularly so in resource-poor settings.