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Articles
Managing high blood pressure in pregnancy
Abstract
Raised arterial blood pressure is common in pregnancy. Usually it is due solely to the pregnancy and resolves within days or weeks of delivery (pregnancy-induced hypertension – PIH). Occasionally it is chronic hypertension which predates or begins during pregnancy; it persists after delivery. In some women it is a mixture of both, with pregnancy-induced hypertension superimposed on existing chronic hypertension. In this article we discuss the risks to mother and fetus of hypertension in pregnancy and review its prevention and management.