Daily home checks may cut heart risk for women with pre-eclampsia
Oxford, UK: Scientists have identified a simple way for women with pre-eclampsia to reduce their long-term risk of heart attack, stroke, and potentially early death: daily blood pressure checks at home.
Hypertension during pregnancy, known as pre-eclampsia, affects 3–8% of pregnant women worldwide. It usually develops after 20 weeks gestation and can lead to organ damage for the mother. If not managed, it can endanger the baby’s life. Long-term problems often develop too, including a higher risk of heart disease in later life.
A new study from the University of Oxford, published in the journal Hypertension, tested whether closer monitoring after birth could change that trajectory. Researchers followed 220 women who had pre-eclampsia during pregnancy. One group of 112 women performed at-home blood pressure checks and reported the readings in an app. Doctors then adjusted medication accordingly. The other group of 108 women received standard care, where only a few blood pressure readings were taken and medication was reduced in a less person-specific way in the eight weeks post-birth.
Follow-up tests six to nine months later showed women who did daily checks had less stiff arteries. Stiff arteries are linked to high blood pressure, clot formation, and potentially heart attacks and strokes.Trials are now beginning to assess how more regular checks can be rolled out on a larger scale.
Dr Sonya Babu-Narayan, clinical director at the British Heart Foundation, which funded the work, said: “We now look forward to seeing results from larger studies with longer follow-up to see how this might save women’s lives.”
