A hypertensive disorder of pregnancy — gestational hypertension or pre-eclampsia — leaves a woman with raised lifetime cardiovascular and renal risk. The follow-up to act on that risk is also the step most often dropped once she is discharged with a well baby.
The fix is a plan made before discharge, not left to chance. Check and document blood pressure in the early postpartum weeks and again at the postnatal visit, and record the pregnancy complication in the long-term problem list so primary care picks it up.
Use the visit to counsel on weight, smoking, activity and the risk in a future pregnancy, and name who will monitor blood pressure and when. One clear handover prevents a known risk from going unwatched for years.
- Check and document blood pressure in the early postpartum weeks and again at the postnatal visit.
- Record the pregnancy complication in the long-term problem list so primary care acts on it.
- Counsel on weight, smoking, activity and the risk in a future pregnancy.
- Name who will monitor blood pressure and when, before the woman is discharged.
Why it matters
These women carry raised lifetime cardiovascular and renal risk, yet follow-up is the step most often lost after delivery.
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