A pregnancy that ended years ago may still matter at your next checkup, even if you felt fine afterward. A study of more than 1.4 million women, published Oct. 6 in BMJ Medicine, found that several pregnancy complications were linked to higher rates of heart disease, type 2 diabetes, high blood pressure, and chronic kidney disease in the years after delivery.
The study's practical message is about communication. Telling a primary care doctor about gestational diabetes, high blood pressure in pregnancy, or postpartum depression can help flag who may benefit from earlier screening. The authors concluded that their results support "obtaining a full reproductive history" during routine care.
