Fatal splenic rupture in a pregnant woman with hemoglobin C/beta-thalassemia and myeloid metaplasia.

Splenic rupture with intraperitoneal hemorrhage is a fatal condition that is rarely encountered during the third trimester of pregnancy; its pathogenetic mechanisms and causes are largely unknown. We report a case of splenic rupture in a pregnant woman that caused the death of the mother and child. The patient was a carrier of double heterozygosis for hemoglobin C/beta-thalassemia.