Women who experience complications during pregnancy may face a higher risk of having a stroke before the age of 50, according to a new study published in Neurology, the medical journal of the American Academy of Neurology. While the overall likelihood of early stroke remains low, the research suggests that complications such as preeclampsia, preterm birth, and stillbirth could serve as early indicators of elevated stroke risk.
The study, led by Dr. Frank-Erik De Leeuw of Radboud University in Nijmegen, the Netherlands, analyzed data from 1,072 women who had experienced at least one pregnancy. Of those, 358 had an ischemic stroke between the ages of 18 and 49, while 714 did not. Researchers compared the prevalence of various pregnancy complications between the two groups, focusing on conditions such as gestational diabetes, preterm delivery, miscarriage, and low birth weight.
The analysis showed that 51% of women who had a stroke had experienced at least one pregnancy complication, compared to just 31% of those who had not. After adjusting for age at first pregnancy, the researchers found women with a stroke were more than twice as likely to have had at least one complication.
The strongest associations emerged for stillbirth, linked to nearly five times the risk of early stroke, followed by preeclampsia, which was associated with a fourfold increase. Preterm birth and small-for-gestational-age babies were tied to nearly three times the risk. Many of these cases were associated with strokes from large artery disease, often related to atherosclerosis.
“While the overall risk of stroke is still very low, our study found pregnancy complications may be an early warning sign of stroke risk—even before age 50,” said Dr. De Leeuw. “Knowing this history could help doctors identify those who may benefit from early prevention and cardiovascular care.”
A limitation of the study is its reliance on self-reported data for some complications, which may lack the accuracy of medical records. Additionally, the researchers couldn’t account for all conventional stroke risk factors.
Reference: History of Pregnancy Complications and the Risk of Ischemic Stroke in Young Women, Verburgt, Esmée, Hilkens, Nina A. et al., doi: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000214009, Neurology, Wolters Kluwer
doi: 10.1212/WNL.0000000000214009
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