For the First Time in Medical History: Doctors Save Pregnant Woman with Ruptured Aorta and Her Twins

For the first time in medical history, Bulgarian doctors have saved a pregnant woman suffering from a ruptured aorta, along with her unborn twins. Medical teams from the National Cardiology Hospital and Maichin Dom spent four months fighting to save the lives of the 29-year-old woman and her two baby boys.

The family is now home, and the twins have been named after the cardiologists who helped save them.

In late January, 29-year-old Desislava Ralcheva from Zlatitsa was five months pregnant when she travelled to Sofia for a routine examination with her gynaecologist.

“Suddenly, I experienced severe shortness of breath and intense pain in my chest and back,” she recalled.

She informed her doctor that she had undergone heart surgery as an infant. She was immediately referred to the emergency department of the National Cardiology Hospital, where doctors diagnosed a ruptured aorta within minutes.

“There was a serious danger to all three of us,” she said.

Dr Alexander Alexandrov, Head of the Department of Interventional Cardiology at the National Cardiology Hospital, explained:

“We faced an enormous dilemma because no such case has ever been described. We made the courageous decision to proceed with the intervention. Without this procedure, the mortality rate for a woman carrying twins and suffering from aortic dissection is 100 per cent. She would not have survived.”

The life-saving operation normally required X-ray guidance. However, to avoid exposing the unborn babies to radiation, doctors used transoesophageal ultrasound imaging instead.

Prof Ivan Kostov, Director of Maichin Dom, said:

“Together with our colleagues, we made the difficult decision not to terminate the pregnancy.”

For approximately two and a half months, Desislava remained under close monitoring by specialists from both hospitals.

At the end of March, she gave birth to twin boys by Caesarean section at the National Cardiology Hospital.

“Perhaps 40 to 50 doctors were involved while we were delivering the babies,” Prof Kostov said.

Stefka Georgieva, a neonatologist at Maichin Dom, added:

“The resuscitation of the newborns required considerable time because they were born in a critical condition.”

The twins spent around two months in the neonatal unit at Maichin Dom.

“The children are named after Dr Alexander Alexandrov and Dr Boyan Kunev. They saved us — they are our guardian angels,” Desislava said.

Dr Alexandrov commented:

“This is why we became doctors. The case is unique worldwide; there is no other documented case like it.”

Dr Krasimir Dzhinsov added:

“This case showed that medicine in Bulgaria is operating at a level above the world standard.”

Desislava described the experience simply:

“This is the third time my life has been saved.”

Today, Boyan and Alexander are home with their family, and their mother hopes that one day they will grow up to become doctors themselves.