Highlights:- Women suffering from preeclampsia during pregnancy are more likely
than women with normal blood pressure to develop hypertension after
pregnancy
- Preeclampsia is a condition that occurs in pregnant women marked by
high blood pressure and elevated protein in urine, affecting up to 5 percent of pregnancies in developed countries
Preeclamptic
women are at an increased
risk of
lingering hypertension even after delivery, which may sometimes go
undetected with consequent complications, according to a recent study done at the Erasmus
Medical Center, Rotterdam, Netherlands. The findings of the study appear in the
American Heart Association's journal
Hypertension.
Dr Laura Benschop, a researcher in
obstetrics and gynecology at Erasmus Medical Center, Rotterdam, the Netherlands,
said, "The problem is
high blood pressure after
pregnancy often goes unnoticed
because many of these women have
normal
blood pressure readings in the doctor's office. We aimed to determine how common
it is for women who have pre-eclampsia to have high blood pressure in the year
after pregnancy, by looking at more than just their blood pressure readings in
the doctor's office."
Studying the Effect of
Preeclampsia on Blood Pressure Values Post-pregnancy
- The study team followed up 200 women diagnosed with severe
preeclampsia during their pregnancies.
- Severe preeclampsia refers to systolic blood pressure of 160 mmHg
or more and/or diastolic blood pressure of 110 mmHg or greater.
- The women were monitored for one year after their pregnancies, which included
measuring blood pressure during the day and night out of clinic as well as
and taking blood pressure readings in the clinic.
The key findings of the study included
the following:
- More than 41 percent of the women
showed elevated blood pressure in the year after pregnancy.
- Interestingly, most of the women
(17.5 percent) showed masked hypertension, that is, normal blood pressure
readings in the doctor's office, but elevated readings outside of the
doctor's office when measured at different times during the course of the
day
- Sustained hypertension was noted in
14.5 percent of the women; white coat hypertension (9.5 percent), when
people have higher blood pressure
readings at the doctor's clinic compared to outside the clinic setting
(due to anxiety).
- Forty-six percent of the women
showed insufficient decrease in blood pressure from day time readings and
night readings which is considered unhealthy.
- Approximately 42.5 percent of women
had night-time hypertension, which is associated with increased risk of
heart disease, stroke and death
The findings of the study seem to suggest
that women diagnosed with severe preeclampsia during pregnancy have a higher
risk of hypertension post-delivery as well and
if out of clinic readings were not recorded and only in-clinic readings
were used, 56 percent of hypertension cases would have been missed.
‘Women diagnosed with preeclampsia should have their blood pressure closely monitored after pregnancy as well due to increased risk of post-pregnancy hypertension.’
"Our findings suggest women who have
high blood pressure during
pregnancy
should continue to monitor their blood pressure long after they've delivered
their babies. It's not only important to monitor blood pressure in the
doctor's office, but also at
different
times of the day and night,
at home,"
Benschop said. "We've shown here that high blood pressure comes in many
forms after pregnancy. Women who know their numbers can take the proper steps
to lower their blood pressure and avoid the health consequences of high blood
pressure later in life."
Possible Limitations of
the Study
The study mainly included highly educated
Caucasian women and thus the findings
may
not be reflective of all races, or income levels.
Revised Guidelines for Diagnosing Hypertension
According to recently released guidelines
by the American College of Cardiology/American Heart Association Task Force on
Clinical Practice Guidelines,
high blood
pressure is now defined as systolic readings of 130 mm Hg and higher, or
diastolic blood pressure readings of 80 or more. This is a significant
change from the older values of 140/90 mmHg and higher, indicating that
complications can occur at these lower readings as well.
Preeclampsia In Brief
Preeclampsia (earlier referred to as
toxemia of pregnancy) is a condition that usually occurs after 20 weeks of
pregnancy in a woman who has been previously normal. It is marked by elevated
blood pressure and excretion of increased amounts of protein in the urine. It
can be asymptomatic and if it goes undetected, can result in
serious sometimes fatal complications for both the mother as well as the baby.
References:- Pre-eclampsia - (https://www.nhs.uk/conditions/pre-eclampsia/)
Source: Medindia
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