Primary Care-Based Cardiovascular Disease Risk Management After Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes: a Narrative Review

Associations between Health-Related Social Needs and Postpartum Linkage to Care

INTRODUCTION

Ongoing care after pregnancy is recommended. Health-related social needs are recognized barriers to care, yet their pregnancy-related prevalence and associations with care are unknown. Researchers sought to assess (1) the prevalence of health-related social needs during pregnancy-based care, and (2) their associations with ongoing care after pregnancy.

METHODS

Electronic health record data were analyzed for individuals with prenatal care and delivery (2018-2021) at an urban safety-net hospital, with routine screening for health-related social needs multiple times during pregnancy through 6 weeks postpartum. Health-related social needs were summarized as screened negative, screened positive, or not screened. Linkage to ongoing care was defined as a completed non-urgent visit separate from pregnancy-based care, >6 weeks through 1 year postpartum. Data were collected in 2022 and analyzed in 2023-2024.

RESULTS

Of 4,941 individuals, 53% identified as Black non-Hispanic and 21% as Hispanic, 68% were publicly insured, and 93% completed ≥1 health-related social needs screening. Nearly 1 in 4 screened positive for health-related social needs, and 53% linked to ongoing care. Compared with those who screened negative for health-related social needs (n=3,491), linkage to ongoing care was similar among those who screened positive (n=1,079; adjusted risk ratio, aRR=1.04, 95% CI=0.98, 1.10) and lower among those not screened (n=371; aRR=0.77, 95% CI=0.68, 0.86).

CONCLUSIONS

Researchers identified a 24% prevalence of pregnancy-related health-related social needs and 53% subsequent linkage to ongoing care. Compared with screening negative for health-related social needs, screening positive was not associated with linkage to care, while being not screened was associated with a 20% lower likelihood of linkage to ongoing care.

Maternal-fetal dyad beyond the phenomenology of pregnancy: from primordial cardiovascular prevention on out, do not miss this boat!

Pregnancy represents a stress test for every woman's cardiovascular (CV) system, and a pre-existing maternal unfavorable cardio-metabolic phenotype can uncover both adverse pregnancy outcomes and the subsequent development of cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factors during and after pregnancy. Moreover, the maternal cardiac and extracardiac environment can affect offspring's cardiovascular health through a complex mechanism called developmental programming, in which fetal growth can be influenced by maternal conditions. This interaction continues later in life, as adverse developmental programming, along with lifestyle risk factors and genetic predisposition, can exacerbate and accelerate the development of CV risk factors and CVD in childhood and adolescence. The aim of this narrative review is to summarize the latest evidences regarding maternal-fetal dyad and its role on primordial, primary and secondary CV prevention.

How Payers Can Improve Care After Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes

This Viewpoint discusses the role of payers in monitoring patients for chronic health problems after an adverse pregnancy outcome.

Considering gestational diabetes and gestational hypertension history across two pregnancies in relationship to cardiovascular disease development: A retrospective cohort study

AIMS

Gestational diabetes (GDM) and hypertension (GHTN) occurrences signal elevated cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. There is little study of occurrence and recurrence of these conditions in relationship to CVD. Among women with two singleton pregnancies, we aimed to quantify CVD risk in relationship to the number of GDM/GHTN occurrences.

METHODS

In this Quebec-based retrospective cohort study (n = 431,980), we ascertained the number of GDM/GHTN occurrences over two pregnancies and assessed for CVD over a median of 16.4 years (cohort inception 1990-2012, outcomes 1990-2019). We defined CVD as a composite of myocardial infarction, stroke, and angina, requiring hospitalization and/or causing death. We adjusted Cox proportional hazards models for offspring size, preterm/term birth status, maternal age group, time between deliveries, ethnicity, deprivation level, and co-morbid conditions.

RESULTS

Compared to absence of GDM/GHTN in either pregnancy, one GDM/GHTN occurrence increased CVD hazards by 47% (hazard ratio [HR] = 1.47, 95% confidence interval [CI] 1.35-1.61), two occurrences nearly doubled hazards (HR = 1.91, 95% CI 1.68-2.17), and three or more approximately tripled CVD hazards (HR = 2.93, 95% CI 2.20-3.90). Individual components of the composite demonstrated similar findings.

CONCLUSIONS

Health care providers and mothers should consider a complete history of GDM/GHTN occurrences to ascertain the importance and urgency of preventive action.

The effect of postpartum lifestyle interventions on blood pressure: a systematic literature review

Postpartum lifestyle modification is recommended to hypertension risk. We conducted a systematic literature review to assess the evidence for postpartum lifestyle interventions to reduce blood pressure. We searched for relevant publications from 2010 through November 2022. Two authors independently conducted article screening and data extraction; a third resolved discrepancies. Ultimately, nine studies met inclusion criteria. Most were randomized controlled trials and had sample sizes <100. In all but one of the eight studies reporting race data, nearly all participants identified as White. None of the studies reported a significant intervention effect on blood pressure. However, most interventions were associated with improvements in other outcomes, such as physical activity. Overall, the evidence for postpartum lifestyle interventions to reduce blood pressure is limited to a handful of studies characterized by small sample sizes and a lack of racial diversity. Additional research with larger samples, more diverse populations, and intermediate outcomes is warranted.

Health Experiences of African American Mothers, Wellness in the Postpartum Period and Beyond (HEAL): A Qualitative Study Applying a Critical Race Feminist Theoretical Framework

The objective of this study is to explore the cultural, social, and historical factors that affect postpartum primary care utilization among Black women with cardiometabolic risk factors and to identify the needs, barriers, and facilitators that are associated with it. We conducted in-depth interviews of 18 Black women with one or more cardiometabolic complications (pre-pregnancy chronic hypertension, diabetes, obesity, preeclampsia, or gestational diabetes) within one year of delivery. We recruited women from three early home-visiting programs in Baltimore, Maryland, between May 2020 and June 2021. We used Critical Race Feminism theory and a behavioral model for healthcare utilization as an analytical lens to develop a codebook and code interview transcripts. We identified and summarized emergent patterns and themes using textual and thematic analysis. We categorized our findings into six main themes: (1) The enduring influence of structural racism, (2) personally mediated racism in healthcare and beyond, (3) sociocultural beliefs about preventative healthcare, (4) barriers to postpartum care transitions, such as education and multidisciplinary communication, (5) facilitators of postpartum care transitions, such as patient-provider relationships and continuity of care, and (6) postpartum health and healthcare needs, such as mental health and social support. Critical race feminism provides a valuable lens for exploring drivers of postpartum primary care utilization while considering the intersectional experiences of Black women.

Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy

Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) are one of the most commonly occurring complications of pregnancy and include chronic hypertension, gestational hypertension, and pre-eclampsia. New developments in early pregnancy screening to identify women at high risk for pre-eclampsia combined with targeted aspirin prophylaxis could greatly reduce the number of affected pregnancies. Furthermore, recent advances in the diagnosis of pre-eclampsia, such as placental growth factor based testing, have been shown to improve the identification of those pregnancies at highest risk of severe complications. Evidence from trials has refined the target blood pressure and timing of delivery to manage chronic hypertension and pre-eclampsia with non-severe features, respectively. Importantly, a wealth of epidemiological data now links HDP to future cardiovascular disease and diabetes decades after an affected pregnancy. This review discusses the current guidelines and research data on the prevention, diagnosis, management, and postnatal follow-up of HDP. It also discusses the gap in knowledge regarding the long term risks for cardiovascular disease following HDP and illustrates the importance of improving adherence to postnatal guidelines to monitor hypertension and the need for more research focused on primary prevention of future cardiovascular disease in women identified as being at high risk because of HDP.

Prepregnancy Cardiovascular Disease Risk Factors and Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes in a Safety-Net Hospital

Background: Many adverse pregnancy outcomes (APOs) are associated with elevated cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk. However, APO data in the context of pre-existing CVD risk factors, and from diverse populations, are limited. We assessed the occurrence of APOs among individuals with and without prepregnancy CVD risk factors, overall and by race/ethnicity. Methods: We conducted a retrospective study using electronic medical record data from a large urban safety-net hospital. Individuals with prenatal care and delivery between 2016 and 2018 at the hospital were included, and data from prenatal intake through the delivery hospitalization were captured. The exposure, prepregnancy CVD risk factors (hypertension, diabetes, tobacco use, and obesity), and the outcome, APOs (hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, gestational diabetes, preterm delivery, low birth weight, and stillbirth), were identified from electronic medical records. Results: We identified 3760 unique delivering individuals, of whom 55.1% self-identified as Black non-Hispanic and 17% as Hispanic. Prepregnancy CVD risk factor prevalence was 45.6%, most commonly obesity (26.6%). APO prevalence was 35.6%, most commonly a hypertensive disorder of pregnancy (20.1%). Overall, 45.7% of APOs occurred in the absence of recognized prepregnancy CVD risk factors, representing 16.3% of the total sample. Among individuals without prepregnancy CVD risk factors, APO prevalence was 30.0% and did not vary by race/ethnicity. Conclusions: In this racially and ethnically diverse hospital-based sample, APOs were present in one in three parous individuals without prepregnancy CVD risk factors-a group with potentially elevated CVD risk who might otherwise be missed by traditional CVD risk factor screening.

Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes and Postpartum Care as a Pathway to Future Health

Adverse pregnancy outcomes (APOs) collectively represent the leading causes of maternal and neonatal morbidity and mortality. Beyond the potentially devastating impact of APOs during pregnancy and the puerperium, women diagnosed with APOs have a 2-fold to 4-fold increased risk of future cardiovascular disease. Fortunately, APOs occur at an opportune time, in early-adulthood to mid-adulthood, when primary and secondary prevention strategies can alter the disease trajectory and improve long-term health outcomes. This chapter takes a life-course approach to (1) the epidemiology of APOs, (2) evidence-based strategies for clinicians to manage APOs, and (3) future directions for APO research and clinical practice.