British researchers say they have taken a major step towards pin-pointing women who are at increased risk of blood clots after giving birth.
The risk is raised for those who have suffered a stillbirth or premature birth, or have medical conditions including diabetes, varicose veins, inflammatory bowel disease or heart disease, say Dr Matthew Grainge and colleagues at Nottingham University, UK.
Other women at raised risk of a venous thromboembolism (VTE) include those who are obese, and those who suffered bleeding during pregnancy or labour and had a caesarean.
The team looked at figures from GP patient records, hospital discharge forms and prescriptions relating to almost 400,000 pregnancies among women aged 15 to 44 years of age. Key information was analysed from all women who developed VTE – including deep vein thrombosis – for the first time during their pregnancy. Age, body mass index and smoking habits were taken into account.
"VTE is a rare but serious complication of pregnancy and childbirth," explains Dr Grainge. "It affects around one or two pregnancies per 1,000 but, despite this, remains a leading cause of mortality in expectant and new mothers in developed countries.
"Preventative measures for VTE, such as a daily dose of heparin, may not be cost-effective or safe and are therefore only recommended for women who are considered high risk. However, there is currently inconsistency and disagreement over the factors which put women in that high-risk category and we hope that this research will provide clinicians with valuable new information."
Dr Grainge added: "The strong association between stillbirths and premature births and VTE in particular is a finding of real importance."
Full details of the study were published yesterday (2 April) in the journal Blood.
Sultan, A. A. et al. Risk factors for first venous thromboembolism around pregnancy: A population based cohort study from the United Kingdom. Blood 2 April 2013
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