Abstract: Background: Abdominal pregnancy is a rare, life-threatening condition.
Case: A 39-year-old pregnant, gravida 2, para 1 (spontaneous vaginal delivery), was presented to hospital at 36+6 weeks gestation on account of abdominal pain. She underwent an emergency caesarean section due to foetal distress. The diagnosis of abdominal pregnancy was not made until intrasurgical operation was carried out and a live baby of 2.8 kg was delivered via laparotomy with an intact uterus. However, to avoid major bleeding the placenta was left in situ along with gauze packs to achieve hemostasis. A second laparotomy was eventually carried out to remove the gauzes after one week, but the placenta, since being firmly attached to the postero-lateral pelvic wall, was not removed.
Conclusions: The present case recalls the attention to the possible misdiagnosed abdominal pregnancy in low resource settings where ultrasound scan is often not available and to the management of placenta after delivering the foetus.
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