Symptoms usually include one or more of the following: orthopnea (difficulty breathing while lying flat), dyspnea (shortness of breath) on exertion, pitting edema (swelling), cough, frequent night-time urination, excessive weight gain during the last month of pregnancy (1-2+ kg/week; two to four or more pounds per week), palpitations (sensation of racing heart-rate, skipping beats, long pauses between beats, or fluttering), and chest pain. The shortness of breath is often described by<unk>  patients as the inability to take a deep or full breath or to get enough air into the lungs. Also, patients often describe the need to prop themselves up overnight by using two or more pillows in order to breathe better. These symptoms, swelling, and/or cough may be indications of pulmonary edema (fluid in the lungs) resulting from acute heart failure and<unk> . Diagnosis may be delayed or dismissed as early symptoms may be interpreted as being typical of normal pregnancy. Delays in diagnosis and treatment of<unk>  are associated with increased morbidity and mortality. It is also quite common for women to present with evidence of having an embolus (clot) passing from the heart to a vital organ, causing such complications as stroke, loss of circulation to a limb, even coronary artery occlusion (blockage) with typical myocardial infarction (heart attack). For these reasons, it is paramount that clinicians hold a high suspicion of<unk>  in any peri- or postpartum patient where unusual or unexplained symptoms or presentations occur.
Peripartum cardiomyopathy
Takotsubo cardiomyopathy
Arrhythmogenic cardiomyopathy
Aicardi syndrome
Sudden arrhythmic death syndrome
Uremic pericarditis
Alcoholic cardiomyopathy
Toxic anterior segment syndrome