2023-09-28 13:24:00
Reminder on hypertension : arterial hypertension (HTA) is characterized by too high blood pressure over a long period and not only during physical effort or in a stressful situation. In the long term, hypertension can be the cause of numerous cardiovascular problems, visual or kidney problems… Hypertension is defined as a systolic blood pressure of 14 and/or a diastolic blood pressure. of 9, or a blood pressure of 14/9 (140/90 millimeters of mercury or mmHg).
Can pregnancy cause high blood pressure?
L’pregnancy-related high blood pressure (pregnancy hypertension) – or ‘gestational‘ -is an abnormal rise in blood pressure during pregnancy. It is the most common health problem among pregnant women; hypertension is present in 5 to 10% of pregnancies1. Can have serious consequences,Pregnancy hypertension must be detected early and managed to prevent complications for mother and baby.
What is the impact of hypertension on pregnancy?
When you are about to have a child, it issevere hypertension which should worry. It is characterized by a blood pressure value greater than or equal to 16/11 (i.e. 160 mmhg systolic blood pressure and 110 mmhg diastolic blood pressure). These abnormal figures reflect a condition that could endanger the health of the mother and baby. When it manifests itself, it is generally around the 20e week of pregnancy and beyond.
Severe hypertension can promote vascular, cerebral and renal complications, and affect different organs.
High blood pressure can cause stunted growth, or cause what is called a retroplacental hematoma, which is a blood vessel that tears behind the placenta, and can lead to placental abruption.
Typically, within 12 weeks of giving birth, blood pressure drops gradually. If this is not the case and the hypertension persists, it is because it is not only linked to pregnancy and there is surely a problem of pre-existing hypertension, which does not had not been detected before pregnancy… Without blood pressure values prior to pregnancy, the risk is therefore great of mistaking chronic hypertension for hypertension gestationnelle.
Hypertension and pre-eclampsia
Pre-eclampsia is a disease of pregnancy characterized by an increase in blood pressure and an increase in the amount of protein present in the urine linked to placental dysfunction. It occurs at the earliest after 20 weeks of amenorrhea but can also occur later, shortly before childbirth or sometimes even after (postpartum). Each year in France, 40,000 women are affected by this pathology. “Most patients will deliver a healthy baby and recover quickly. However, left untreated, this syndrome causes many complications that can lead to the death of the mother and/or child.”specifies National Institute of Health and Medical Research (Inserm)1. It can cause serious complications in 10% of cases.
Pre-eclampsia causes:
- 1/3 of births of very premature babies in France1,
- major cause of intrauterine growth retardation1.
In France, it is also the 2e cause of maternal deaths in France (around 20 deaths per year), after hemorrhages during delivery1.
Pre-eclampsia occurs in 70 to 75% of cases during a first pregnancy. The risk decreases with a second and subsequent pregnancies (when they involve the same partner). In the event of a change of partner, a subsequent pregnancy is as risky as a first pregnancy.
There is a way to detect pre-eclampsia thanks to the measurement of two biological markers: PGF (Placenta Growth Factor), a placental growth factor, and SFLT1, a soluble receptor for vascular growth factor which make it possible to determine the risk of pre-eclampsia and to prevent it.
Although we know the threshold at which blood pressure is too high, the diagnosis of hypertensives is difficult because there are no symptoms of hypertension (hta)! More generally, certain small health hiccups can ring a bell and suggest an increase in tension: headaches, tinnitus, blurred vision, feeling unwell, abdominal pain, water retention, etc. can thus be linked. to an abnormal increase in blood pressure.
The only way to diagnose this pathology is to take a blood pressure reading (at the doctor’s office or at home using an indicator provided by a health professional).
It is not possible to cure hypertension in pregnant women, but there are ways to avoid high blood pressure spikes:
- antihypertensive treatment,
- be careful not to consume too much salt,
- adopt a balanced diet.
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