Indeed, over the course of the 50-year study, the researchers found that women who simply had higher levels of sugar in their urine during pregnancy were roughly 4 times more likely to die from heart disease when compared against women with normal sugar levels.
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The women who had pre-eclampsia, hypertension occurring after 20 weeks of gestation, were almost 6 times more likely to die from heart disease than those who did not have uncontrolled blood pressure.
In the study, the researchers looked at about 15,500 women in the metropolitan area of Oakland, California, who became pregnant between 1959 and 1967. As of the latest statistics, 368 participants had already died from a cardiac disease and majority had complications during their antenatal months.
The researchers also found that having certain combinations of pregnancy complications was related to a significantly higher risk of death from heart disease.
A five times greater risk for women with pre-existing high blood pressure and delivery of a low-birth-weight baby. “The idea is that, just like a person’s cholesterol level and blood pressure are considered risk factors [for heart disease], so should those pregnancy complications”.
The investigators also found that the women who experienced a decline in their levels of hemoglobin during pregnancy were about twice as likely to die from heart disease later in life, compared with the pregnant women who did not experience the decline. This way, the women’s health can be closely monitored. A link was indicated between their cause of death and complications experienced during pregnancy. Low hemoglobin levels could lead to increased stress on the heart, since it must pump faster to supply oxygen to the body, she suggested. In 2013, there were 399,503 women who died of CVD. These women can be counseled to follow a heart-healthy lifestyle, and possibly be given treatment to help control high blood pressure or other heart risk factors.
“Obstetricians serve as primary care physicians for many young women and can readily use these complications to identify high-risk women to implement early prevention”, the authors write.
The current study, led by Barbara A. Cohn, PhD, adds to this that preeclampsia in early pregnancy strongly predicts premature CVD death before age 60.
Considering the results of the research, doctors must create special recommendations for these patients with pregnancy complications during postpartum months. “While it’s never too late, we like to start young”.
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“These are women now who have young children and are thinking how they need to be healthy and stay around for their kids”, she said. Also, it is important for the doctors to educate their patients regarding the risks that they may be predisposed to.
