Postpartum hypertension is the term used to describe a period of high blood pressure following the birth of a baby.  It is not uncommon for a woman who has just given birth to suffer from high blood pressure for a period of time following the birth. Although fairly common, if you develop this condition you will be closely monitored as it can be dangerous.

Postpartum high blood pressure will usually occur during the first three to six days following the birth and although it is a common issue, there is no real treatment for this temporary increase of blood pressure.

The biggest issues concerning postpartum hypertension is not so much in the average pregnancy, but it is a big issue in the 10% of cases in which the pregnant mother developed pregnancy induced hypertension during the last half of the pregnancy. Preeclampsia in itself is a dangerous and potentially deadly condition whose only form of treatment is either giving birth or aborting the fetus, but after the pregnancy, the development of postpartum hypertension can further complicate the condition.

In a postpartum mother, the blood pressure increase will usually reach its highest point within 3 to six days following the actual birth so in most cases it will occur in the hospital and under the care of the highly trained nursing staff. This increase of the mother’s blood pressure can be great enough to cause a stoke or even death, but due to very little information being available as to the actual cause of this temporary increase of the blood pressure, there is also very little in the form of treatment or even prevention of postpartum hypertension from occurring.

There has been a number of test trials performed to determine if the postpartum hypertension could be safely prevented but so far the results have been inconclusive. At the same time various treatments of postpartum high blood pressure have also been performed showing that the immediate prescription of antihypertesinve medications issued immediately after the detection of postpartum hypertension leveled off the patient’s blood pressure within a day.

In many cases, it has been found that ensuring that you monitor your blood pressure during the first week following the pregnancy and reporting any drastic changes immediately can result in the prescribing of necessary medications which can prevent any serious side effects associated with postpartum hypertension.

Above all though, it is important to try to stay healthy and remember this is an unusual condition and statistically your chances of developing postpartum hypertension are very low.  In the event that you have had to deal with an increase in blood pressure, especially towards the end of the pregnancy, please make sure your blood pressure is closely monitored and checked in regular intervals for the first week following the birth. This is an important precaution to prevent the possibility of incurring a stroke or possibly death as a result of postpartum high blood pressure.

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