The Long Shadow of Pre-eclampsia: Why Follow-up Screenings Matter
Pre-eclampsia is a condition that occurs during pregnancy, leading to raised blood pressure, which can result in organ damage or failure and be life-threatening to both mother and baby. It is caused by a problem with the blood vessels which prevents the placenta from developing properly. Pre-eclampsia can occur even when the mother is completely healthy, but any underlying illness, such as existing high blood pressure (hypertension), makes it more likely to occur.
After the pregnancy, symptoms of pre-eclampsia disappear, and current local clinical guidelines don’t mandate any follow-up screenings long-term. However, these women are at high risk for early- onset of hypertension, heart disease (cardiovascular disease) and kidney failure. These conditions can manifest at any point in the months or years after the pregnancy.
Associate Professor Erika Jones from the Division of Nephrology and Hypertension in the Department of Medicine and PhD researcher Dr Bianca Davidson are working to show that regular screening of these women could be a life-changing intervention.