Active clinical trials for "Hypertension, Pregnancy-Induced"

The aim of this study is to investigate the role of the 677C→T polymorphism in the methylenetetrahydrofolate reductase (MTHFR) gene on blood pressure (BP) during pregnancy, and to examine the effect of intervention with riboflavin, alone or in combination with 5-methyltetrahydrofolate (5-MTHF), as a non-drug approach for managing BP in pregnancy in women with the variant TT genotype. In addition, we aim to examine the effect of maternal supplementation with riboflavin, alone or combined with 5-MTHF, on BP in the offspring in early infancy. Study design: A double-blind randomized controlled trial in pregnant women will be conducted. Women with a singleton pregnancy who are in their first trimester will be recruited from antenatal clinics in Northern Ireland and the Republic of Ireland. Women interested in the study will provide informed consent, complete a screening questionnaire and will provide a buccal swab to collect DNA to screen for the MTHFR 677C→T polymorphism. Women with multiple pregnancies, a previous NTD-affected pregnancy and those who are taking medication interfering with B-vitamin metabolism will be excluded from participation in the study. At approximately the 16th gestational week (GW), those with the variant TT genotype and age-matched heterozygous women (CT genotype) will be randomised to receive riboflavin (5 mg/day) alone, or in combination with 5-MTHF (400µg/day), or placebo, until the end of pregnancy. A non-fasting blood sample will be collected for biomarker assessment of B-vitamin status and other relevant variables from each participant before intervention and at the 36th GW. At the same time points, anthropometric and BP measurements will be taken. Women will also complete a health and lifestyle questionnaire and a 4-day dietary record. Samples of cord blood, umbilical cord and placenta will be collected after delivery and anthropometric parameters of the newborns will be retrieved postpartum. Maternal and infant BP will be measured 2-4 months after birth. In parallel with the intervention trial, age-matched pregnant women who do not carry the variant gene (CC genotype) and have not been randomized to treatment, will be monitored in order to control for any changes associated with normal pregnancy in the study outcome measurements. In the pilot phase, the feasibility and acceptability of the study procedures and treatment will be evaluated for clarification of the sample size and refinement of the study protocol.

Background: PE (pre-eclampsia) is a common pregnancy-specific vascular hypertensive disease affecting 3-5% of pregnancies. PE independently increases the risk for premature cardiovascular disease (CVD) in mothers and their offspring long-term. PE provides a unique window for early risk profiling and CVD prevention. However, the efficacy of a family oriented lifestyle intervention to lower CVD risk in families with history of PE has not previously been evaluated. Aim: This study will explore the impact of PE on CVD progression 8-12 years from delivery in mothers and their children, and assess whether a lifestyle intervention is useful for lowering mother and child blood pressure and improving the CVD risk profile overall in families with a history of PE. Hypothesis: PE is related with CVD progression mediated by elevated blood pressure. Blood pressure and the CVD risk profile overall is modifiable in mothers and children by a 12-month behavioral lifestyle intervention in families with a history of PE. Study design: Randomized controlled behavioral lifestyle intervention trial where families (mother, child and father from the FINNPEC study) are offered the opportunity to participate in a lifestyle intervention program 8-12 years after a PE pregnancy. 300 PE families will be randomized 1:1 to a 12-month lifestyle intervention program or to a control group. A parallel group of 100 non-PE control families will be assessed at baseline and follow-up. Main outcome: 24 hour mean blood pressure change between baseline and follow-up in mother and child. Significance: This study will provide information on CVD progression in mothers and children 8-12 years from a PE pregnancy. Furthermore, the study assess the effect of a 12-month lifestyle intervention on blood pressure and CVD risk profile overall following a PE pregnancy. Potentially, the study provides the opportunity to identify PE families at highest risk of CVD progression and families amenable to blood pressure and CVD risk profile improvement.

Hypertensive disorders of pregnancy (HDP) are the most common medical condition affecting pregnancy and a leading cause of maternal morbidity and mortality in the Unites States. HDP also increase lifetime cardiac disease risk in women and infants. Current interventions to prevent HDP are limited, and interventions that do not include medications are minimally effective at preventing HDP. Mindfulness interventions hold promise as a intervention to prevent HDP that does not require pregnant women to take medications. Past research shows that mindfulness interventions reduce blood pressure in adults with hypertension and pre-hypertension. However, past studies of mindfulness interventions for pregnant women have not allowed women at risk for HDP to participate. The preliminary study of prenatal mindfulness training for women at risk for HDP demonstrated benefit on maternal blood pressure and fetal growth. However, the mechanisms explaining effects of prenatal mindfulness training on risk for HDP are unknown. Building upon these promising preliminary findings, the proposed clinical trial will measure daily experiences of stress, physiological reactivity to stress, and interpersonal processes before and after prenatal mindfulness training. The investigators hypothesize that mindfulness training will impact these processes, which may lead to improved maternal cardiovascular parameters and reduced risk for HDP. N=150 pregnant women at risk for HDP will be randomized to an 8-week phone-delivered mindfulness intervention or usual care. For every participant, we will measure maternal cardiovascular parameters (24-hour blood pressure and uterine artery resistance values by ultrasound Doppler) before and after the 8-week period. All participants will complete surveys of daily experiences for 2 weeks before and after the 8-week period to evaluate mechanisms of mindfulness training on maternal cardiovascular parameters. Daily experiences will be measured using surveys delivered via smartphone-app, ambient audio sampling, and wearable wrist-worn biosensor monitoring (heart rate and heart rate variability).

Hypertension during pregnancy remains a leading cause of maternal and foetal morbidity and mortality. The frequency (5 to 10% of pregnancies) and potential severity of these diseases, both for the mother and the child, are reasons for standardizing and optimizing medical practices. The cause of hypertension during pregnancy and in particular the pathophysiology of preeclampsia remains poorly understood. Guidelines distinguish these two entities by the existence of proteinuria from and after the 20th week of amenorrhea and by maternal-foetal complications, more serious in pre-eclampsia than in gestational hypertension. During gestational hypertension and preeclampsia acute placental vasculature and blood flow abnormalities were observed, maybe due to generalized vascular endothelial activation and vasospasm resulting in systemic hypertension and organ hypoperfusion. Endothelial dysfunction and abnormal expression of several specific blood biomarkers are now well accepted as characteristics of preeclampsia. However, the progression of gestational hypertension to preeclampsia is difficult to predict; between 15 and 40 % of gestational hypertension cases progress to preeclampsia, suggesting that it is the same worsening disease. Endothelial dysfunction could be at the origin of gestational hypertension, and subsequent development of preeclampsia through an imbalance between pro- and anti-angiogenic factors. The main objective of this research is to assess whether the alteration of endothelium-dependent vasodilatation in pregnant women with stable hypertension is correlated with the occurrence of preeclampsia later during pregnancy.

Regular exercise during pregnancy and postpartum leads to health benefits for mother and child. Inactivity during pregnancy and after delivery is now treated as risky behavior. Physically active pregnant women significantly less often suffer from, among others, gestational diabetes, excessive weight gain, lipids disorders, hypertension, preeclampsia, depressive symptoms, functional and structural disorders, including stress urinary incontinence, back pain or diastasis recti abdominis (DRA). Prenatal physical activity reduces the risk of premature delivery and miscarriage, fetal macrosomia, complications in labor or the risk of metabolic disorders in children. High-intensity interval training (HIIT) has become one of the most popular trends in the fitness sector. The effectiveness of HIIT on a number of health indicators has been proven in various populations but limited data are available on HIIT during pregnancy. The first hypothesis is that the HIIT, implemented during pregnancy and after childbirth, as a stronger exercise stimulus, will have a better impact on selected biological and psychological parameters of mothers, as well as on selected health parameters of their children, compared to the MICT (moderate intensity continuous training). Therefore, it promises better preventive effects on pregnancy complications and ailments as well as non-communicable diseases occurring in these populations. In the second hypothesis, it was assumed that HIIT and MICT implemented during pregnancy and after childbirth, tailored to the specific needs of the perinatal period, will not differ in the effectiveness of maintaining normal functional parameters in women, including prevention of urinary incontinence, back pain, DRA, etc. Pregnant women who apply for the study will be divided into three groups: those attending the HIIT, MICT or educational programs. During the study, the participants will be under standard obstetric care. As comparative groups, non-pregnant women will be also recruited. The investigators will collect data on selected biological, functional and psychological parameters in the study women at each trimester of pregnancy, during the puerperium and one year after childbirth. The data from the medical documentation on the course of childbirth and the assessment of the new-born, as well as the results of preventive examinations in the study women's children aged one, two, four and six years will be also analyzed.

Slow deep breathing actives the vagal nerve and leads to a natural reduction in physiological parameters such as blood pressure, heart rate and digestion. The effects of these techniques have not been assessed in pregnancy. The primary objective is to assess the effects of various yogic deep breathing techniques on blood pressure during pregnancy. The breathing exercises will include Alternate nostril breathing, Bhramari breathing, and Sheetali breathing. A secondary objective will be to assess the effects of these breathing exercises on other physiological parameters including heart rate, heart rate variability, body temperature, cardiac output, vascular resistance and respiratory rate.

Study background High blood pressure during pregnancy is a worldwide health problem that can be dangerous to mothers and commonly causes premature birth and small babies. There is also growing evidence that mothers who suffer from high blood pressure in pregnancy, and their babies, have a higher risk of high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease later in life. Previous studies have revealed detrimental changes in the structure and function of the heart and blood vessels of mothers, and their babies, who experience this common complication. These changes may explain their increased risk of later disease. The investigators have also learned through previous studies that tetrahydrobiopterin (BH4), a molecule that has a role in blood vessel health, plays an important role in stabilising blood vessel function. Lower levels of BH4 are evident in both the placenta and the umbilical cord from mothers with high blood pressure. We, therefore, want to investigate how closely BH4 levels are related to clinical features of pre-eclampsia and whether altering levels of BH4, using a nutritional supplement, improves features of the disease such as blood vessel function. To do this, the investigators need to compare the levels of BH4 between mothers with pre-eclampsia, those taking the supplement and those without pre-eclampsia. The investigators also compare how the heart and blood vessels look and function in these groups using ultrasound methods, including echocardiography and fetal sonography. Study objectives CAREFOL-HT will assess how levels of BH4 differ in pregnant women with high blood pressure and if this is reflected in functional changes in the heart and blood vessels of these women. The investigators will also determine whether changing levels of BH4, using a tetrahydrofolate supplement (5-MTHF), changes blood vessel function.

The purpose of this study is to see if a combined pill of Angiotensin-converting enzyme (ACE) inhibitors (a medication that helps relax your veins and arteries to lower your blood pressure) with diuretics (sometimes called water pills, help rid your body of salt and water) will control blood pressure better than a different blood pressure medication of calcium channel blocker (lower your blood pressure by preventing calcium from entering the cells of your heart and arteries). Both medications are part of our usual care for high blood pressure after delivery.

To compare the incidence of preeclampsia in obese pregnant women (BMI greater than 30) with a singleton gestation at less than 20 weeks and either a history of preeclampsia in a prior pregnancy or stage I hypertension or pre-gestational diabetes who are randomized to either 81mg/day aspirin or 162mg/day aspirin.

The aim of this study is to evaluate how variations in maternal nutrition may affect twin pregnancy and in particular: incidence of maternal obstetric complications: gestational diabetes gestational hypertension or preeclampsia intrahepatic cholestasis (ICP) fetal growth, development and birth weight of the babies