Women who experienced pregnancy complications are at greater risk of dying from heart attack and other cardiovascular diseases (CVD) later in life, according to a follow-up study of 14,062 women and related pregnancy events from 1959-1967 and CVD death through 2011. Researchers found:

• Pre-existing hypertension (HR, 3.5), glycosuria (HR, 4.2), late-onset pre-eclampsia (HR, 2.0), and hemoglobin decline over the second and third trimesters (HR, 1.7) predicted CVD death.

• Delivery of a small-for-gestation or preterm infant and early-onset pre-eclampsia significantly predicted premature CVD death.

• Preterm birth combined with hemorrhage, gestational hypertension, or pre-existing hypertension identified women with a 4- to 7-fold increased risk of CVD death.

• Pre-eclampsia in combination with pre-existing hypertension conferred a significant nearly 6-fold risk compared to a 4-fold risk for pre-existing hypertension alone.

Citation: Cirillo PM, Cohn BA. Pregnancy complications and cardiovascular disease death: Fifty-year follow-up of the child health and development studies pregnancy cohort. Circulation. [Published online ahead of print September 21, 2015]. doi: 10.1161/CIRCULATIONAHA.113.003901.