-Case Reports-

Recovery from Peripartum Cardiomyopathy in a Japanese Woman after Administration of Bromocriptine as a New Treatment Option

Takashi Abe¹, Izuki Amano², Rintaro Sawa¹, Shigeo Akira¹, Akihito Nakai^1,3 and Toshiyuki Takeshita¹

¹Division of Reproductive Medicine, Perinatology and Gynecologic Oncology, Graduate School of Medicine, Nippon Medical School
²Tama-Hokubu Medical Center, Tokyo
³Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Nippon Medical School Tama Nagayama Hospital

Peripartum cardiomyopathy (PPCM) is a form of heart failure that occurs in women within 1 month before delivery and 5 months after delivery. The outcome of PPCM is variable but improves significantly when appropriate medication is administered in the acute phase; furthermore, the outcome does not worsen even after discontinuation of therapy in the chronic phase. The symptoms and signs of PPCM are similar to those of idiopathic dilated cardiomyopathy. The medical management of patients with PPCM is similar to that for other other forms of heart failure. Recent experimental data implicate a casual role of prolactin in the development of PPCM. Prolactin secretion can be reduced with bromocriptine which had benefitical effects in a small study. We present a Japanese woman with acute PPCM treated with bromocriptine as a therapeutic option. Following treatment, the serum prolactin levels dropped swiftly. Concurrently, LV function improved, and heart failure symptoms decreased, accompanied by a decrease in the BNP level.

J Nippon Med Sch 2010; 77: 226-230

Keywords
heart failure, peripartum cardiomyopathy, bromocriptine

Correspondence to
Takashi Abe, MD, Ph D, Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Nippon Medical School, 1-1-5 Sendagi, Bunkyo-ku, Tokyo 113-8603, Japan
takashi360@nms.ac.jp

Received, February 19, 2010
Accepted, May 7, 2010