How does Pregnancy Increase Cardiovascular Risk?

Stressful life events and perceived stress correlate with cardiovascular issues across women’s lives. Pregnancy increases psychosocial stress and can elevate cardiovascular risk while also increasing the likelihood of adverse pregnancy outcomes. Pregnancy functions as a stress test for the heart, uncovering or worsening conditions such as high blood pressure and diabetes. The heart works harder during pregnancy to support fetal growth, and cardiac stress can persist after delivery. Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of pregnancy-related death in the United States, and many such deaths are preventable. Preventive care often concentrates on prenatal and immediate postpartum periods, even though many cardiovascular-related deaths occur between seven days and one year postpartum. Guidelines recommend treating chronic hypertension to keep blood pressure below 140/90 mmHg and using home blood pressure monitoring with patient-reported readings to guide treatment decisions.

"Pregnancy is associated with an increase in psychosocial stress, which can lead to higher cardiovascular risks and increase the risk of adverse pregnancy outcomes, or complications during pregnancy and/or delivery. Pregnancy acts as a stress test for the heart and can uncover, or even worsen, problems like high blood pressure and diabetes. During pregnancy, the heart must work harder to support a growing fetus, and cardiac stress often continues after delivery."

"Cardiovascular disease is the leading cause of pregnancy-related death in the U.S., yet most of these deaths are preventable. The National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine report on maternal health highlights that although 57% of cardiovascular-related deaths occur between seven days and one year postpartum, preventive care is often focused on the prenatal and immediate postpartum period."

"Clinicians must treat pregnant women with chronic hypertension so that their blood pressure is reduced to less than 140/90 millimeters of mercury. This is because consistently elevated blood pressure during pregnancy can cause pregnancy complications and increase a woman's risk for developing cardiovascular disease."

"The new guidelines also recommended that clinicians caring for patients with postpartum hypertension or other hypertensive disorders give their patients home blood pressure monitors and use a program that allows the patients to report their readings. This way, clinicians can adjust treatment and set clear thresholds for action."

Read at Alternative Medicine Magazine