Abstract
Objective To investigate the effect of race, body mass index (BMI), and weight gain on blood
pressure in pregnancy and postpartum.
Study Design Secondary analysis of pregnant women aged 14 to 25 who received prenatal care at
a university-affiliated public clinic in New Haven, Connecticut and delivered singleton
term infants (n = 418). Longitudinal multivariate analysis was used to evaluate blood pressure trajectories
from pregnancy through 12 weeks postpartum.
Results Obese and overweight women had significantly higher blood pressure readings as compared
with women with normal BMI (all p < 0.05). African American women who had high pregnancy weight gain had the greatest
increase in mean arterial and diastolic blood pressures in pregnancy and postpartum.
Conclusion Blood pressure trajectories in pregnancy and postpartum are significantly affected
by race, BMI, and weight gain. Given the young age of this cohort, targeted efforts
must be made for postpartum weight reduction to reduce cardiovascular risk.
Keywords
pregnancy - weight gain - obesity - racial differences
