aortic stenosis balloon valvuloplasty

The Procedure

First, the mother has an epidural placed. Then, a needle is used to provide pain medicine to the fetus through an injection in the thigh. 

Next, a needle is inserted into the mother’s abdomen and uterus, through the fetus’s ribs and into the fetus’s heart. 

A wire and tiny coronary angioplasty balloon are placed through the needle across the aortic valve. The balloon is then gently inflate to make the opening of the aortic valve bigger. The balloon, wire and needle are then removed. 

After the procedure, doctors watch the mother and baby with many fetal ultrasounds an fetal echocardiograms. The goal is for the mother to deliver as close to full term as possible.