Pregnancy Signs & Symptoms, Week by Week Pregnancy Guide

In the United States, the condition known as pre eclampsia is discovered in roughly 300,000 pregnant women.

Its cause is still a medical mystery although symptoms are known to include raised blood pressure, protein in a woman’s urine and swelling of the joints.

Usually once the pregnancy is over so is the preeclampsia, however new evidence suggests that women who have suffered from the condition may go on to be at a greater risk from a stroke or potential heart problems. A research team headed by Dr Graeme Smith in Ontario is very concerned at the findings of the study.

We are not talking about older women already facing significant risks from a pregnancy later in life he stated, “these are young and healthy women”  Over 600 woman are being studied, half of whom have never experienced preeclampsia.

The professor of obstetrics and gynecology at Queen’s University has noted that similar studies are showing comparable results.

As the figures are still relatively small, ensuring on going screening could initially be the answer. The real problem lies in making the medical profession aware of the likely connection between preeclampsia and potential heart attacks and strokes for these women.

There might actually be a silver lining to this medical cloud because heart disease kills more women in America than anything else. If a greater number of women are monitored as a result of a minor condition of their pregnancy then lots more will be learnt during the process. Real change can be made for these women.