Risk for Ischemic Heart Disease Increased With Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes

THURSDAY, Feb. 2, 2023 (HealthDay News) -- Women with adverse pregnancy outcomes have an increased long-term risk for ischemic heart disease, according to a study published online Feb. 1 in The BMJ.

Casey Crump, M.D., Ph.D., from the Icahn School of Medicine at Mount Sinai in New York City, and colleagues conducted a national cohort study involving 2,195,266 women with a first singleton delivery in Sweden during 1973 to 2015 to examine the associations between major adverse pregnancy outcomes and long-term risks for ischemic heart disease.

The researchers found that 3.8 percent of the women were diagnosed with ischemic heart disease during 53.6 million person-years of follow-up. Independent associations were seen for all five adverse pregnancy outcomes (preterm delivery, small for gestational age, preeclampsia, other hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, and gestational diabetes) with an increased risk for ischemic heart disease. In the 10 years after delivery, the adjusted hazard ratios for ischemic heart disease associated with specific adverse pregnancy outcomes were 2.09, 1.72, 1.54, 1.30, and 1.10 for other hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, preterm delivery, preeclampsia, gestational diabetes, and small for gestational age, respectively. Even 30 to 46 years after delivery, the hazard ratios remained significantly increased at 1.47, 1.40, 1.32, 1.23, and 1.16, respectively. Shared familial factors partially explained these findings (<45 percent). Further increases in risk were seen for women who experienced multiple adverse pregnancy outcomes.

"Women with adverse pregnancy outcomes should be considered for early preventive evaluation and long-term risk reduction to help prevent the development of ischemic heart disease," the authors write.

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