Daijiworld Media Network - New Delhi

New Delhi, Apr 3: Blood pressure trends in early pregnancy, even in women who do not develop hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP), can predict the likelihood of developing hypertension up to 14 years after childbirth, a recent study has found.

Published in the journal Hypertension, the study highlights a crucial but often overlooked group—postpartum women who did not experience HDP but remain at risk for future cardiovascular complications. High blood pressure is a key risk factor for heart disease, the leading cause of death worldwide.

The research, led by a team from the University of Pittsburgh, analyzed data from 174,774 women who received prenatal care at Kaiser Permanente Northern California between 2009 and 2019. None of these women had pre-existing hypertension, kidney, liver, or heart disease, nor a history of preeclampsia before pregnancy.

Tracking their health records for up to 14 years after childbirth, researchers identified six distinct blood pressure patterns during the first 20 weeks of pregnancy. These patterns ranged from ultra-low to elevated-stable levels, with women in the elevated-stable category facing the highest risk of developing hypertension later in life.

Crucially, even among women who did not develop HDP, those with elevated-stable blood pressure patterns during early pregnancy were found to be 11 times more likely to develop hypertension compared to those with lower-risk blood pressure trends.

The findings suggest that monitoring blood pressure trajectories during early pregnancy could serve as an early warning system, helping doctors identify at-risk individuals and implement targeted surveillance and interventions. Early detection and management could significantly reduce long-term cardiovascular risks for these women.

The study underscores the importance of proactive healthcare strategies to mitigate future heart disease risks and calls for integrating such predictive measures into routine prenatal care.