Cardiovascular disease is a leading cause of death among pregnant women: Study
| May 7, 2019, 13:44 IST
An alarming new study reveals cardiovascular disease has become the leading cause of death among pregnant women, as well as new mothers.
According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), between 1 and 4 per cent of the four million pregnancies that occur in the United States are affected by cardiovascular disease.
However, a good care plan and proper diagnosis in a timely fashion can help women have pregnancies that are safe and successful. Unfortunately, many pregnant and postpartum women do not receive the right treatment for heart disease because they are not being treated for it. This is why close to 26 per cent of maternal deaths are due to heart disease.
"While evidence suggests that it can take years to implement innovation in clinical practice, today I implore my fellow practitioners to start using this guidance immediately to prevent more women from dying from complications in pregnancy and postpartum,” ACOG president Dr. Lisa Hollier, a professor in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Baylor College of Medicine and medical director of obstetrics and gynecology for The Centers for Children and Women, said in a press conference. Adding, "There is so much we can to do to prevent negative outcomes and ensure moms go home with their babies and are around to see them grow up."
For women who have a moderate or high risk of heart disease, they should be provided with a higher level of care to ensure they have safe pregnancies. “There are interventions that can be made to improve a woman’s outcomes in the peripartum should she have known CVD risks. Therefore, identifying women prior to pregnancy will lead to safer pregnancies and postpartum states for at-risk women,” Dr Jennifer Haythe, a cardiologist with the Women’s Center for Cardiovascular Health at Columbia University in New York, told a news portal.
Once the baby is born, ACOG explains that doctors should not stop treating women. "The risk [for CVD] continues through pregnancy, may even accelerate somewhat postpartum, and it persists for quite some time," stated Dr James N. Martin Jr., chair of ACOG’s pregnancy and heart disease task force, at a press conference. That is why it is important that three months after giving birth, these women should get a thorough cardiovascular evaluation.
According to the American College of Obstetricians and Gynecologists (ACOG), between 1 and 4 per cent of the four million pregnancies that occur in the United States are affected by cardiovascular disease.
However, a good care plan and proper diagnosis in a timely fashion can help women have pregnancies that are safe and successful. Unfortunately, many pregnant and postpartum women do not receive the right treatment for heart disease because they are not being treated for it. This is why close to 26 per cent of maternal deaths are due to heart disease.
"While evidence suggests that it can take years to implement innovation in clinical practice, today I implore my fellow practitioners to start using this guidance immediately to prevent more women from dying from complications in pregnancy and postpartum,” ACOG president Dr. Lisa Hollier, a professor in the department of obstetrics and gynecology at Baylor College of Medicine and medical director of obstetrics and gynecology for The Centers for Children and Women, said in a press conference. Adding, "There is so much we can to do to prevent negative outcomes and ensure moms go home with their babies and are around to see them grow up."
For women who have a moderate or high risk of heart disease, they should be provided with a higher level of care to ensure they have safe pregnancies. “There are interventions that can be made to improve a woman’s outcomes in the peripartum should she have known CVD risks. Therefore, identifying women prior to pregnancy will lead to safer pregnancies and postpartum states for at-risk women,” Dr Jennifer Haythe, a cardiologist with the Women’s Center for Cardiovascular Health at Columbia University in New York, told a news portal.
Once the baby is born, ACOG explains that doctors should not stop treating women. "The risk [for CVD] continues through pregnancy, may even accelerate somewhat postpartum, and it persists for quite some time," stated Dr James N. Martin Jr., chair of ACOG’s pregnancy and heart disease task force, at a press conference. That is why it is important that three months after giving birth, these women should get a thorough cardiovascular evaluation.