Management and birth outcomes of pregnant women with Chiari malformations: A 14 years retrospective case series

Abstract Objective The management of Chiari malformations in pregnancy is challenging due to the perceived risk of adverse maternal neurological outcomes and raising intracranial pressure during labour. Our aim was to evaluate the management and health outcomes of pregnant women cared for at a regional referral centre and highlight elements of best practice. Study Design A retrospective case series of all pregnant women diagnosed with Chiari malformation over fourteen years (January 2004–June 2018) at the Birmingham Women’s Hospital – UK. Results Twenty-one women (23 pregnancies) with Chiari malformation were included, four had syringomyelia (4/21,19%) and six had previously undergone craniovertebral decompression (6/21, 29%). The median age was 34-years (range 20–41), the median gravidity was two (range 1–8), the median parity was one (range 0–6), and the median extent of tonsillar herniation was 11 mm (range 9–18). The majority of women received their preferred mode of delivery (15 normal vaginal deliveries (15/23, 65.2%) and 6 elective Caesarean sections (6/23, 26.1%)) with two pregnancies ending with an emergency caesarean section for obstetric complications (2/23, 8.7%). Five Caesarean section were performed under general anaesthetic, two under spinal (2/23, 8.7%) and one under epidural anaesthesia (1/23, 4.3%) with no neurological sequelae. There were no adverse neurological outcomes at discharge postnatally. Conclusions Offering normal vaginal delivery with effective analgesia, for women with Chiari malformation, appears to be safe. Pregnancy care should be provided by a multi-disciplinary team with experience in managing Chiari malformation.