Hypertension in pregnancy and women of childbearing age.

Full Abstract

Hypertension in women of childbearing age is a challenging medical problem with increasing prevalence. Essential hypertension remains the most common diagnosis in young women. Reproductive goals and possible teratogenic effects must be considered when initiating therapy. Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy are frequent causes of maternal/fetal morbidity and mortality, the most common being preeclampsia/eclampsia. Pregnant patients should be screened routinely. Early recognition and prompt care from a multidisciplinary service, including obstetrics, cardiology, and intensive medicine, are required to prevent deleterious outcomes. Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy reflect endometrial endothelial dysfunction/abnormalities and systemic endothelial dysfunction, which might predict future cardiovascular disease in these young women, prompting early preventive measures.

Author information

Author/s: Yoder, Scott R (SR); Thornburg, Loralei L (LL); Bisognano, John D (JD);

Affiliation: Department of Internal Medicine, Cardiology Division, University of Rochester Medical Center, Rochester, New York 4642-8679, USA.

Journal and publication information

Publication Type: Journal Article; Review

Journal: The American journal of medicine (Am J Med), published in United States. (Language: eng)

Reference: 2009-Oct; vol 122 (issue 10) : pp 890-5

Dates: Created 2009/09/29; Completed 2009/10/15;

PMID: 19786154, status: MEDLINE (last retrieval date: 10/15/2009, IMS Date: )

Sourced from the National Library of Medicine. Abstract text and other information may be subject to copyright.

External Links for this article
(including full text providers, if available):

Click Electronic Full-text Provider Links to see options for finding the electronic full text links to this article. Note there may be a subscription or fee required for access to the full text. See our FAQ for information on finding FREE full text articles.

This article may also be located in paper journal collections available in many libraries. Use the Journal and Publication Information above to find the full article.