139-POS

Abstract

Objectives Several studies have demonstrated an association between preeclampsia and premature development of cardiovascular disease (CVD) later in life. Although the association is incompletely understood, it probably includes pre-existing common risk factors. However, preeclampsia may also induce permanent vascular and metabolic alterations that could affect the systemic arterial elastic properties. In this regard, arterial stiffening could represent a link between the systemic effects of preeclampsia and CVD risk. We aimed to evaluate the effect of preeclampsia on markers of arterial stiffness and subclinical atherosclerosis in women with a history of preeclampsia. Methods A 10-year follow-up study comparing 19 exposed women (previous pre-eclamptic pregnancies) and 19 unexposed women (previous normotensive pregnancies) matched on age and time since delivery. Markers of arterial stiffness (aortic pulse wave velocity and augmentation index) and of atherosclerosis (carotid intima-media thickness and atheromatous plaques presence) – as well as traditional CVD risk factors - were compared between the two groups. Results Paired analysis showed a higher aortic pulse wave velocity in women with a history of preeclampsia than in unexposed women (7.96 ± 1.45 vs. 7.16 ± 0.66 m/s, respectively, P = 0.055). However, the difference fell marginally short of statistical significance. Waist-Hip ratio ( P = 0.04) and percentage with hypertension (defined as elevated systolic and/or diastolic blood pressure and/or antihypertensive drug treatment ( P = 0.03)) were significantly higher in previous preeclamptic women. No difference was observed in augmentation index, intima-media thickness or plaque presence. Conclusions Women with preeclamptic pregnancies 10 years earlier tended to have higher pulse wave velocity compared to women with previous normotensive pregnancies. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first comparative assessment of arterial stiffness 10 years after pregnancies complicated by preeclampsia. Disclosures M. Christensen: None. C.J. Kronborg: None. U.B. Knudsen: None.