 |
NetWellness provides the highest quality health information and education services created and evaluated by faculty of our partner universities.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
|
|
|
NetWellness provides the highest quality health information and education services created and evaluated by faculty of our partner universities.
Saturday, July 5, 2008
|
Many women encounter complications during pregnancy. Two of the most common ones, elevated blood sugars (gestational diabetes) and elevated blood pressure (preeclampsia) have emerged as possible indicators of increased risk of stroke.
Gestational Diabetes is the inability of the body to process carbohydrates during pregnancy. Often there are no symptoms of the condition. It is recommended that all pregnant women be screened for gestational diabetes during their pregnancy.
The symptoms are usually mild and not life-threatening to the pregnant woman. However, the increased blood sugar levels in the mother are associated with an increased rate of complications in the baby, including:
The risk factors for gestational diabetes are
In many cases, blood glucose levels go back to pre-pregnancy levels after delivery. Up to 40% of women with gestational diabetes develop full-blown diabetes within 5-10 years after delivery. The risk may be increased in obese women.
Preeclampsia is the development of elevated blood pressure about mid-way through pregnancy. Common symptoms may include swelling of the face and hands. The exact cause of preeclampsia is not known. Preeclampsia occurs in approximately 8% of all pregnancies.
Increased risk is associated with:
Currently, the only way to cure preeclampsia is to deliver the baby. If it is too early to delivery the baby, the condition may be managed in the following ways:
The risk of recurrent preeclampsia in subsequent pregnancies is approximately 33%.
Recent results from two research groups show that there can be consequences of pregnancy complications extending beyond the delivery date. Dr. Cheryl Bushnell and her colleagues at Duke University Medical Center looked at medical records and found:
Women who experienced preeclampsia and gestational diabetes during their pregnancy were twice as likely or more to have a stroke, on average, 13.5 years after the pregnancy.
Dr. David Brown and colleagues conducting the Stroke Prevention in Young Women Study in Baltimore, Maryland came up with similar results. They found that:
Women with preeclampsia were 60% more likely to have a stroke in the months and years that followed their pregnancy.
While these results need to be confirmed with additional study they highlight the importance of the need for regular pre-natal visits to identify preeclampsia and gestational diabetes, as well as other problems. The results also show the need to identify ways to prevent these problems, so that the secondary consequence of stroke later in life can be avoided.
It is important for all pregnant women to obtain early and ongoing prenatal care. This allows for the early recognition and treatment of these and other pregnancy-related conditions. As with any condition or disease, some risk factors are controllable, or treatable, which means you can take action to reduce that risk. Other factors are beyond your control. Risk of these complications can be reduced through:
Stroke is the nation's third leading killer and the leading cause of adult disability. The ailment strikes as many as 750,000 Americans a year, killing over 150,000 and permanently impairing hundreds of thousands more.
To learn more about stroke NetWellness has developed a complete Stroke health topic area featuring an Overview and information on:
References:
This article is a NetWellness exclusive. 
Last Reviewed: Apr 17, 2006
|
Gwendolyn F Lynch, MD Assistant Professor Cerebrovascular Center University Hospitals School of Medicine Case Western Reserve University |
|
|
|
Please note: only your personal physician or other health professional you consult can best advise you on matters of your health based on your medical history, your family medical history, your medication history, and how information from any of these databases may apply to you. Neither University of Cincinnati (NetWellness) nor any party involved in creating, producing or delivering this web site shall be liable for any damages arising out of access to or use of this web site, or any errors or omissions in the content thereof. (More) |