Contents:

General Principles and Guidelines

Management of Hypertension

Managing Heart Failure Pre and Postpartum

Management of Coronary Artery Disease and Arrhythmias

Anticoagulation in Pregnancy

Obstetric Drugs in the Management of Cardiovascular Disease

Index

The spectrum of cardiovascular disease affecting women in pregnancy and postpartum is changing and differs between countries. In the western world, the risk of cardiovascular disease in pregnancy has increased due to the increasing age at the first pregnancy and the worldwide obesity epidemic leading also to early diabetes and hypertension. In addition the treatment of congenital heart disease has improved leading to an increased number of women with residual heart disease reaching childbearing age. In the western world maternal heart disease is now the major cause of maternal death during pregnancy. In the developing world rheumatic heart disease and the cardiomyopathies dominate. Those women often need anticoagulation as they might have had a valve replacement or formed a thrombus in the left heart. Drugs during pregnancy and the breastfeeding period is a complex subject and there is a profound shortage of evidence based recommendations. As drug treatment in pregnancy concern the mother and the fetus optimum treatment of both must be targeted. This book aims at discussing the most important indications of drug usage in pregnancy and postpartum with the aim of weighing the potential risk of a drug and the possible benefit against each other.​ Common terms and phrases:

acute adverse effects agents antagonists anti-Xa levels antiarrhythmic anticoagulation antihypertensive arrhythmias associated atosiban atrial fibrillation beta-blockers blood pressure calcium channel blockers cardiac output Cardiol Cardiology Cardiology ESC Cardiovascular Diseases Category clinical clopidogrel complications contraindicated coronary artery cross the placenta D-dimer delivery Digoxin Diseases during Pregnancy dose Drugs in Pregnancy eclampsia ESC guidelines European Society evidence fetal risk fetus gestational hypertension haemorrhage heart disease heparin Hilfiker-Kleiner Hydralazine hypertension hypertension in pregnancy inhibitors intravenous labour LMWH Magnesium sulphate Management of Cardiovascular maternal medication mmHg monitoring nancy neonatal nifedipine non-pregnant ObstetGynecol oral anticoagulants outcome oxytocin peripartum cardiomyopathy postpartum potential PPCM pre-eclampsia preg pregnant women pulmonary embolism receptor recommended Regitz-Zagrosek renal risk factors ritodrine severe hypertension severe pre-eclampsia Sliwa Society of Cardiology SOMANZ Sotalol studies syndrome tachycardia Task Force teratogenic therapeutic therapy tocolytic treatment trimester uterine Vahanian valve thrombosis vascular venous thromboembolism ventricular weeks women with mechanical