This chapter discusses some of the neurologic complications of medical diseases that may occur in pregnancy. It reviews both the effects of pregnancy on the underlying disorder and how the medical condition may influence pregnancy outcomes. The most up-to-date information about risk stratification and disease management is presented. The specific disorders reviewed include sickle cell disease, antiphospholipid antibody syndrome, cardiac valve diseases, HIV infection, systemic lupus erythematosus, and fibromuscular dysplasia.

An estimated 0.1%-0.8% of obstetric patients require admission to an intensive care unit (ICU) during pregnancy or the puerperium. When neurologic emergencies occur in pregnancy, collaboration between the neurointensivist, obstetric anesthesiologist, and obstetrician is key in minimizing morbidity and mortality.

Care of the critically ill pregnant patient mirrors that of the critically ill nonpregnant patient with some minor exceptions. selleckchem Special care must be taken to consider the normal physiologic changes of pregnancy as well as possible fetal exposure to medical interventions. Timing and method of delivery must be carefully considered when caring for patients with neurologic emergencies. Common neurologic emergencies in pregnancy include hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, intracranial neoplasms, noneclamptic seizures, cerebrovascular disorders, and ventriculoperitoneal shunt malfunctions.

While neurologic emergencies in pregnancy are overall rare, when they do occur, they can be devastating. As in the nonpregnant population, prompt recognition and rapid intervention are crucial in optimizing patient outcomes. When neurologic emergencies occur in pregnancy, maternal and fetal care is optimized through a multidisciplinary care team.

While neurologic emergencies in pregnancy are overall rare, when they do occur, they can be devastating. As in the nonpregnant population, prompt recognition and rapid intervention are crucial in optimizing patient outcomes. When neurologic emergencies occur in pregnancy, maternal and fetal care is optimized through a multidisciplinary care team.Management of the pregnant patient requiring neurosurgery poses multiple challenges, juxtaposing pregnancy-specific considerations with that accompanying the safe provision of intracranial or spine surgery. There are no specific evidence-based recommendations, and case-by-case interdisciplinary discussions will guide informed decision-making about the timing of delivery vis-à-vis neurosurgery, the performance of cesarean delivery immediately before neurosurgery, consequences of neurosurgery on subsequent delivery, or even the optimal anesthetic modality for neurosurgery and/or cesarean delivery. In general, identifying whether increased intracranial pressure poses a risk for herniation is crucial before allowing neuraxial procedures. Modified rapid sequence induction with advanced airway approaches (videolaryngoscopic or fiberoptic) allows improved airway manipulation with reduced risks associated with endotracheal intubation of the obstetric airway. Currently, very few anesthetic drugs are avoided in the neurosurgical pregnant patient; however, ensuring access to critical care units for prolonged monitoring and assistance of the respiratory-compromised patient is necessary to ensure safe outcomes.Physiologic changes occurring in pregnancy and postpartum can have secondary effects on the maternal nervous system. While most alterations to neurologic function during pregnancy are transient, there is an elevated risk for more serious complication in the peripartum period, such as cerebrovascular events or exacerbation of preexisting neurologic conditions. Due to the morbidity and mortality associated with these neurologic manifestations in some cases, timely diagnostic evaluation is essential. In the pregnant population, the use of diagnostic techniques such as computed tomography (CT) and magnetic resonance imaging (MRI), commonly employed to evaluate emergent neurologic abnormalities, requires special consideration of the potential risks associated with prenatal exposure. This review discusses several neurologic conditions affecting women during pregnancy for which diagnostic imaging may be warranted. Concerns relating to CT and MRI procedures, radiation exposure in utero, and exposure to intravenous contrast by placental transfer and breastfeeding are also reviewed.Most medications are not adequately evaluated for use during pregnancy, delivery, or the postpartum period, and package inserts fail to provide clear instructions for use in these contexts, despite major concerns among health-care providers and the community as to how to practice evidence-based pharmacotherapy. Valproate fetopathy hereby serves as one of the more recent illustrations of the scope of the problem. At its best, evidence-based pharmacotherapy is driven by a balanced decision between disease-related risks (natural course of the disease) and any risks related to exposure to medications for mother, fetus, or infant. This chapter aims to describe the general patterns of changes in pharmacokinetics (absorption, distribution, metabolism, elimination) in pregnant women and postpartum, with specific emphasis on placental drug transport and additional focus on lactation. The relevance of these changes is illustrated by discussing medications commonly prescribed to treat neurologic conditions.The term “neuro-obstetrics” refers to a multidisciplinary approach to the care of pregnant women with neurologic comorbidities, both preconceptionally and throughout pregnancy. General preconception care should be offered to all women, including women with neurologic disease. Women with neurologic comorbidities should also be offered specialist preconception care by an obstetrician who consults with a neurologist, anesthesiologist, and if indicated clinical geneticist and/or other specialists. In women with neurologic comorbidities, neurologic sequelae may influence the course of the pregnancy and delivery. Also, pregnancy may influence the severity of the neurologic condition, depending on the type of disease. Physiologic adaptations during pregnancy and altered pharmacokinetics may cause altered blood serum levels of drugs, leading to decreased or increased drug effects. When administering drugs to a woman who wishes to conceive, it is important to consider possible teratogenic effects and possible secretion in breast milk.