Heart disease is the leading cause of death in the U.S. Sadly, it's also the leading cause of pregnancy-related death, accounting for about 33% of maternal deaths.
February is American Heart Month, a time to promote heart health in our Gulf Coast community. Dr. Kelly Costopoulos Bass, a cardiologist with Lee Health, joined Gulf Coast News to explain how you can ensure optimal heart health if you're pregnant or planning to become pregnant.
Cardio obstetrics isn’t something everyone has heard of before, but it's a subspecialty of cardiology that helps patients who have a heart condition plan for and navigate their pregnancy, ensuring optimal heart health for mother and baby. The goal is to help improve maternal health outcomes.
Cardio OB will help create personalized plans for care during pregnancy, labor, birth and during the postpartum period. Some women have a history of heart conditions when they become pregnant; others become pregnant and learn they have a heart condition that needs to be addressed and sometimes heart conditions develop during pregnancy. At the Lee Health Heart Institute, they are helping expecting mothers monitor all these concerns.
Members of the cardio-obstetrics team will vary depending on the complexity of the patient’s condition. Lee Health's cardiology team collaborates with OB, Maternal Fetal Medicine, anesthesiology, pharmacists and nurses to provide comprehensive cardiovascular care to expecting mothers at risk for heart disease.
Some of the most common heart conditions Bass sees in expecting mothers are blood pressure-related problems, which include chronic hypertension, gestational hypertension, and pre-eclampsia. Developing preeclampsia during pregnancy increases the risk of heart disease, including heart failure, stroke and heart attacks later in life. Developing hypertension during pregnancy affects both mother and baby. If this is left untreated, it can cause serious complications like heart failure and stroke.
For more information, visit online at Lee Health.org and search for the Lee Health Heart Institute to learn more.
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