Am J Perinatol 2010; 27(7): 565-571
DOI: 10.1055/s-0030-1248944
© Thieme Medical Publishers

Recurrence Risk of a Delivery before 34 Weeks of Pregnancy Due to an Early Onset Hypertensive Disorder: A Systematic Review

Josje Langenveld1 , Sofie Jansen2 , Joris van der Post2 , Hans Wolf2 , Ben Willem Mol2 , Wessel Ganzevoort2
  • 1Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Maastricht University Medical Centre, Maastricht, The Netherlands
  • 2Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Academic Medical Centre, Amsterdam, The Netherlands
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Publication History

Publication Date:
19 February 2010 (online)

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ABSTRACT

Early onset hypertensive disorders of pregnancy are associated with adverse maternal and neonatal outcome. The risk of recurrence influences parents' choices on subsequent pregnancies and the counseling obstetrician, but evidence so far has been limited. We performed the first systematic review on the risk of recurrence of hypertensive disorders that had caused delivery <34 weeks. We searched Medline, Embase, and the Cochrane Library for articles published until September 2009 that report on pregnancy outcome after an earlier pregnancy complicated by early hypertension, preeclampsia, or hemolysis, elevated liver enzymes, low platelets (HELLP) syndrome, which resulted in a delivery before 34 weeks. Recurrence rates of premature deliveries due to hypertensive disorders were calculated for each study separately. Pooled data were calculated. The search retrieved 36 relevant articles, of which 11 fulfilled the inclusion criteria. These 11 studies reported on 2377 patients (range 18 to 1754 patients per study), who had 2461 deliveries. Seven studies were included for further calculation. The pooled risk of a delivery before 34 weeks due to recurrence of hypertension, preeclampsia, or HELLP was 7.8% (95% confidence interval 6.7 to 9.0%). Opposed to some previous studies, the overall recurrence rate is generally low. The pooled recurrence risk of an early onset hypertensive disorder is ~8%.

REFERENCES

Josje LangenveldM.D. 

Department of Obstetrics and Gynecology, Maastricht University Medical Centre

PO Box 5800, 6202 AZ Maastricht, The Netherlands

Email: josje_langenveld@hotmail.com