Adverse Pregnancy Outcomes and Cardiovascular Disease Risk

Published: March 29, 2021

Three generations of women embracign in their living room.
  • This statement reviews and summarizes published evidence that adverse pregnancy outcomes (APO)s (hypertensive disorders of pregnancy, preterm delivery, gestational diabetes, small for gestational age delivery, and pregnancy loss) increase a woman’s risk of developing cardiovascular disease (CVD) risk factor development, and of developing later CVD.
  • Adopting a heart-healthy diet, healthy sleep patterns and increasing physical activity among women with adverse pregnancy outcomes, starting in the post-partum setting and continuing across the lifespan, are important lifestyle interventions to decrease CVD risk.
  • An important opportunity exists for healthcare systems to improve transitions of care for women with adverse pregnancy outcome and implement strategies to reduce their long-term CVD risk.