A study in 5.8 million children has found a higher incidence of stroke four decades later in those whose mother had high blood pressure or pre-eclampsia while pregnant, according to recent research presented at the European Society of Cardiology.
Previous research suggested a link between maternal hypertensive disorders and preterm birth, fetal growth restriction, high blood pressure, obesity and diabetes in baby’s later life. These recent findings showed that hypertensive disorders during pregnancy are associated with increased risks of stroke and potentially heart disease in offspring up to the age of 41 years,” researchers wrote, while advising they still don’t fully understand the cause and how it changes baby’s later life cardiovascular risks.
Babies exposed to maternal hypertensive pregnancy disorders during gestation had 29% and 33% increased risks of ischemic heart disease and stroke, respectively. The associations were independent of preterm birth and fetal growth restriction. In the sibling analyses, the association remained for stroke but not for ischemic heart disease.
If future studies have similar findings, researchers said steps could be taken to prevent later-life heart disease in babies by focusing on maternal health including high blood pressure early in life.
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