High blood pressure can remain undetected in new mothers

A new study has warned that women with severe pre-eclampsia should have their blood pressure closely monitored for a year after giving birth.

The Dutch study found that high blood pressure ‘often goes unnoticed because women may have normal blood pressure readings’ in the doctor's surgery, with 17.5 per cent of the 200 women studied having masked hypertension. If solely the in-clinic readings were used, doctors would have missed 56 per cent of the women with high blood pressure.

The study also shows that 46 per cent of the women had an ‘unhealthy’ insufficient decrease in blood pressure from daytime to night time and 42.5 per cent of women in the study were affected by night-time hypertension, which increases the risk of heart disease and stroke.

Laura Benschop, study author, said: "Our findings suggest women who have high blood pressure during pregnancy should continue to monitor their blood pressure long after they've delivered their babies. It's not only important to monitor blood pressure in the doctor's office, but also at different times of the day and night, at home.

"We've shown here that high blood pressure comes in many forms after pregnancy. Women who know their numbers can take the proper steps to lower their blood pressure and avoid the health consequences of high blood pressure later in life."