REVIEW ER 'S CONCLUSIONS It remains unclear whether antihypertensive drug therapy for mild-moderate hypertension during pregnancy is worthwhile
BACKGROUND Mild-moderate hypertension during pregnancy is common .
Antihypertensive drugs are often used in the belief that lowering blood pressure will prevent progression to more severe disease , and thereby improve outcome .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of antihypertensive drug treatments for women with mild to moderate hypertension during pregnancy .
The Effect of Prophylactic Management and Therapeutics on Hypertensive Disease in Pregnancy: Preliminary Studies
A controlled prospect i ve evaluation of pregnancy complicated by chronic hypertension is proposed and preliminary data on population selection and pregnancy outcome are presented . Sixty-three women with evidence of underlying hypertensive disease were followed prospect ively throughout pregnancy . Twenty-three patients were followed in a protocol of intensified prenatal care and r and omized assignment of antihypertensive agents : placebo , hydralazine , or methyldopa .  Forty patients were followed in the high-risk pregnancy clinics at Duke University . The incidence of preeclampsia in the r and omized prophylactic antihypertensive group was statistically lower than that in the nonr and omized group ( 8.7 versus 32.5 % ; P<.01 ) . There were no other statistically significant differences between the groups . The 63 hypertensive women had a high incidence of diabetes mellitus diagnosed during pregnancy ( 49.2 % ) as compared to the authors ' general obstetric population ( 8.1 % )
REVIEW ER 'S CONCLUSIONS It remains unclear whether antihypertensive drug therapy for mild-moderate hypertension during pregnancy is worthwhile
BACKGROUND Mild-moderate hypertension during pregnancy is common .
Antihypertensive drugs are often used in the belief that lowering blood pressure will prevent progression to more severe disease , and thereby improve outcome .
OBJECTIVES To assess the effects of antihypertensive drug treatments for women with mild to moderate hypertension during pregnancy .