Heart attacks on the rise among pregnant women, study finds

The risk of having a heart attack during pregnancy or during the two months following childbirth increases in the United States. A new 12-year study conducted by the NYU School of Medicine found that the risk of heart attack among pregnant American women increased by 25% between 2002 and 2014.

Among women with heart attacks, 4, 5% died. The findings, published in Mayo Clinic Proceedings, did not surprise Dr. Holly Anderson, a cardiologist at Weill Cornell Presbyterian Medical Center in New York.

"When you look at national data, deaths from heart disease in young women have been since 2000, heart attacks are becoming more common in our pregnant women," said Anderson at "CBS This Morning "Wednesday. The authors of the study say that a number of factors probably contribute to these numbers, including the trend of women with children later in life, since the risk of heart attack increases with the risk of heart attack. age in general and especially during pregnancy.

Pregnancy itself is also a strain on the heart. "A pregnant woman is significantly more likely to have a heart attack than non-pregnant women because her blood volume is greater, her weight increases, her heart rate increases, her blood pressure increases," Anderson says. . "And right at the time of delivery, you need to avoid bleeding so that your body will tighten and you become more likely to form blood clots. All of this predisposes you to heart attacks."

What's more, risk factors for heart disease continue to rise in the United States. "High blood pressure, high cholesterol, diabetes are all higher in our young women, and I think stress probably also plays a role," Anderson said.

Anderson pointed out that there are steps that women can take to reduce their risk of heart attack before, during and after pregnancy.

"I would like all women to know that heart disease is the leading cause of death among women and that it is increasing in young women and it is a disease," she said. said. "So, know your risk factors and work to reduce them … Do not smoke, check your blood sugar, your cholesterol and your blood pressure and work to improve them. For a good night's sleep, talk to your doctor about your risk factors.

For the study, researchers examined data on nearly 50 million births recorded in hospitals. They found that 1,061 heart attacks occurred during labor and delivery, and 2,390 heart attacks occurred during the post-natal recovery period. 936 women were hospitalized for a heart attack before birth.

The principal investigator of the study, Dr. Sripal Bangalore, interventional cardiologist at NYU, notes that despite the absolute number of heart attacks and deaths from heart attack in pregnant women remains low , the relatively high mortality rate occurs despite advances in the treatment of heart attacks.

"Our badysis, the most important revision in a decade, reminds us how much pregnancy can be stressful for the woman's body and heart. , causing many physiological changes, and potentially unmasking risk factors that can lead to heart attack, "Bangalore, an badociate professor in the Department of Medicine at NYU Langone Health, said in a statement.