USPSTF recommends frequent BP monitoring throughout pregnancy

New draft recommendations from the U.S. Preventive Services Taskforce (USPSTF) call on health care providers to check pregnant patients’ BP regularly throughout their entire pregnancy.

The update in is response to the alarming pregnancy-related deaths in the United States caused by hypertensive disorders, like pre-eclampsia/eclampsia, that currently affect 1 in 10 pregnancies, up from 1 in 20 in 1993. These disorders are the leading cause of death during and after pregnancy among Native American women and the leading cause of death among Black women.

USPSTF urged health care providers to be aware of these populations’ increased risks so they can “focus clinical energy and resources to those most likely to suffer morbidity or mortality.”

The draft recommendations also call for more research into these conditions and for the use of standard, evidence-based treatment for all patients.

The onset of pre-eclampsia/eclampsia tends to emerge after the first 20 weeks of pregnancy. Low-dose aspirin starting at 12 weeks gestation is recommended for those at heightened risk, including patients with preexisting conditions like diabetes or lupus, those who are aged 35 years and older or younger than age 15 years, patients who have undergone in vitro fertilization, and those who are pregnant for the first time.