A letter to every new mom about your heart—from the cardio-obstetrics team

Dearest expecting or new mom,

It’s hard to think of anything as exciting, exhausting and emotional as those first few weeks at home with your newest addition. But listening to your heart during this time is important in more ways than one.

Along with changes in your heart’s emotions, you may be surprised that the postpartum period could bring changes for your physical heart, too.

That’s why cardiologists and OBGYNs are working together to address the issue of postpartum heart-related conditions. And we want every new mom, and supporting people, to be in on the latest news.

Getting to the heart of maternal health

Often, pregnancy is portrayed on social media as a glamorous occasion filled with nursery prep and gender reveals. But, dear mom, we’re also here to guide you through the not-so-glamorous parts of caring for your maternity health during the pregnancy period.

We’ve seen rising levels of pregnancy and postpartum health concerns related to cardiovascular health. Many factors are at play, from moms waiting later in life to have their first child to an increase in existing health conditions before pregnancy.

It’s estimated that more than 1 in 7 new moms have pregnancy complications such as preeclampsia, gestational high blood pressure or gestational diabetes. For a variety of reasons, this number is even higher in groups like African American women. And all of these conditions could have serious effects if left untreated.

Carrying a child offers a unique glimpse into your health. It’s like a stress test on your body. Heart complications caused by pregnancy may require extra care immediately after delivery and in the distant future. Many women don’t necessarily know how pregnancy affects heart health, so we’re spreading the word about cardio-obstetrics and postpartum health.

Cardio-obstetrics: A new subspecialty

In the past, moms with preeclampsia that resolved after pregnancy didn’t get much long-term follow-up. If they developed postpartum high blood pressure, they may not have seen a cardiologist. But that’s changing.

Health systems like ours are part of a new initiative in cardio-obstetrics. This team approach gives you the benefit of being cared for by multiple doctors working together, including your general OBGYN, high-risk OB specialists and cardiologists.

Now, new moms with heart-related conditions might see a cardiologist during pregnancy, during or immediately after delivery, or in the weeks to come. The cardiologist can offer additional expertise, watching heart health closely and carefully adjusting medications.

By including cardiology as part of the team sooner, the goal is to not only better manage heart-related conditions in the short term but also answer lingering questions about how this might affect future pregnancies or overall heart disease risk.

This team of specialists can guide postpartum follow-up appointments so that new moms get care like regular blood pressure checks, medication management and monitoring for long-term consequences of hypertension in pregnancy. They are constantly working together to create new initiatives that improve care for this vulnerable population.

Staying in the know for your heart

We want you, your partner and your family to know how common cardiovascular problems really are and that it’s possible to develop these conditions during pregnancy and well after delivery.

If you have risk factors for conditions like preeclampsia, we can take proactive steps, such as preventive aspirin therapy and closer monitoring of the baby. But even seemingly healthy, low-risk new moms can present with preeclampsia or other heart-related conditions during and after pregnancy.

Everyone supporting you during this time should know the signs that your health needs attention. Such signs include:

• Elevated blood pressure
• Changes in vision
• Pain in your upper right abdomen
• Shortness of breath

Because pregnancy-related heart issues are serious, we have systems in place to get you the help you need quickly. If you notice a big change in how you’re feeling, you should seek care. Someone is here to support you—anytime, day or night.

As you recover, we encourage you to keep the conversation going, too. Talk to your doctor. Talk to your sisters. Talk to your friends. The more awareness we have around new moms and their heart health, the better we can support them through such an important season of life.

Yours truly,

The cardio-obstetrics team

Questions about your heart health during pregnancy? Speak to your OBGYN.