The Preeclampsia Registry in Action: Patient-reported preconceptional characteristics in the prediction of recurrent preeclampsia

Category: Risk

Lay Summary: One clinical risk factors for developing preeclampsia in pregnancy is having had preeclampsia before- this is called recurrent preeclampsia. Researchers in this study asked what other factors among persons with a history of preeclampsia can also help predict preeclampsia will occur again in a future pregnancy. Data from 1,028 persons in the Preeclampsia Registry with a history of preeclampsia were used to answer this question. Almost 10 years old now, the Preeclampsia Registry was built to create a partnership between preeclampsia survivors and researchers to help our understanding of preeclampsia. In this study, results showed several predictors of recurrent preeclampsia including: history of migraines, high blood pressure outside of pregnancy (called ‘chronic hypertension’), and first-degree relatives with cardiovascular disease or a placenta-related pregnancy complication.

Take home message: a history of migraines, chronic high blood pressure, and a family history of heart disease may increase your risk for developing preeclampsia in more than one pregnancy.

Link: https://pubmed.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/35183928/

Citation: Bijl RC, Cornette JMJ, Brewer AN, Zwart IF, Franx A, Tsigas EZ, Koster MPH. Patient-reported preconceptional characteristics in the prediction of recurrent preeclampsia. Pregnancy Hypertens. 2022 Feb 10;28:44-50. doi: 10.1016/j.preghy.2022.02.003. Epub ahead of print. PMID: 35183928.

About Research Roundup

Each quarter, our team of researchers reviews the most current studies related to hypertensive disorders of pregnancy and selects those studies they feel will be of greatest interest to our community to summarize.

Special thanks to our volunteer research team, who under the leadership of Dr. Elizabeth Sutton, make Research Roundup possible: Alisse Hauspurg, MD Felicia LeMoine, MD Jenny Sones, PhD, DVM, and Robin Trupp, PhD, RN.